As part of a recent interview with Chris Montano of House of Highlights, Warriors marksman Klay Thompson revealed the moment he knew the ACL injury he suffered in Game 6 of the 2019 NBA Finals was severe.

Thompson and the Warriors were trailing the Toronto Raptors in the Finals by a margin of three games to two. With Game 6 in Oakland, several NBA aficionados felt the Dubs would still be able to win the series.

Things were going okay for the Warriors for much of the game. In fact, they were within three points of the Raptors in the closing phases of the third quarter. Their fortunes would soon change, however.

With just over two minutes remaining in the third, Warriors All-Star Stephen Curry managed to steal the ball away from Kyle Lowry, who tripped while making his way through the paint. Curry quickly pushed the ball ahead to Thompson in transition.

As he went up for a fast-break layup attempt, Thompson was fouled by Danny Green. On his descent, Thompson landed awkwardly on his left leg, sending him to the floor in obvious pain. Further medical evaluations confirmed that he had torn his ACL.

The implications of Thompson's injury were quite heavy. Without his services, the Warriors went on to lose the series, 4-2.

“I just remember walking off and telling (head coach Steve Kerr), ‘I'm just gonna go in the back. Hopefully, it will loosen up,'” Thompson said while reflecting on his ACL injury.

“Once I went back there and didn't feel the energy of the crowd or see my teammates or feel that ball in my hands, the adrenaline wears off,” the Warriors marksman added. “And I realized that I had done something pretty significant.

“Although it happened, I can wholeheartedly say that I left my heart out there on the court and tried my hardest,” Thompson said in closing. “Sometimes, you come up short in sports.”

Thompson, who recently signed a five-year, $190 million deal with the Warriors, is still in recovery. Most reports indicate that he could be back in playing shape by February or March. If everything goes well with his rehabilitation process, he'll likely be back on the floor in time for the playoffs.

“ACLs … not good, ok we know that,” Warriors CEO Joe Lacob told NBC Sports. “But stuff happens and that's an injury that now people know how to manage. Plenty of people have come back from ACLs and done pretty well. Honestly, it didn't even remotely cross my mind.”