Klay Thompson will be back at his most familiar spot in the Golden State Warriors' lineup. After coming off the bench for the last six games, the future Hall-of-Famer is set to start for Golden State in Friday's road matchup with the Toronto Raptors due to the absences of Andrew Wiggins and Brandin Podziemski, according to team insider Monte Poole of NBC Sports Bay Area.
Wiggins will miss his third straight game due to an undisclosed personal matter in his native Canada. Golden State expects him back at some point this season, but there's currently no concrete timeline for Wiggins' return.
“Yeah, this is a personal issue that he's dealing with and we expect him back,” Steve Kerr said Thursday. “It's gonna remain private. Rick [Celebrini] has been in contact with him, I have too. We expect him back.”
Podziemski, meanwhile, is out against Toronto after suffering a mild right knee injury in the Warriors' win over the New York Knicks on Thursday. He is officially listed as out on the injury report due to right knee soreness.
“I haven't talked to [team trainer] Rick [Celebrini], so I don't know. I think he had an MRI today and I have no heard any results of the MRI yet,” Kerr said of Podziemski during Friday's pregame media availability. “But we don't think it's serious, and it'll probably be day-to-day.”
Expect former two-way player Lester Quinones to be the main beneficiary of Wiggins and Podziemski's absence versus the Raptors. He was earning regular rotation minutes before Chris Paul returned to the court at the beginning of Golden State's four-game road trip, impressing coaches with his dogged individual defense and ability to knock down open shots. Moses Moody, who's started for Wiggins each of the last two games, should also get more burn with the Dubs shorthanded, while Dario Saric could also get additional minutes at power forward.
Klay Thompson, Warriors have thrived with him coming off bench
The Dubs are 5-1 with Thompson coming off the bench this season, their only loss coming Sunday at Chase Center to the defending-champion Denver Nuggets. He's averaged 19.2 points over that timeframe, shooting a scorching 44.1% from beyond the arc on nearly 10 attempts per game—all improvements compared to Thompson's season-long numbers.
Kerr raised eyebrows league-wide just before the All-Star break when he made the decision to start Podziemski against the Utah Jazz, bringing Thompson off the bench for the first time in 12 years. Thompson responded by exploding for a season-high 35 points in the Warriors' hard-fought victory. After blanching at a bench role earlier this season, the 34-year-old has come to embrace the benefits of serving as Golden State's de facto sixth man.
“Honestly, it’s been a pretty seamless transition. It does have its benefits as far as letting the game settle, seeing the floor before you enter, and just relaxing,” Thompson said after Tuesday's win over the Washington Wizards. “The nerves, especially when you start, can be apparent when it’s a big night. But when you’re coming off the bench it’s a little easier to relax, and I think my game is showing that.”
With Podziemski avoiding serious injury, Thompson seems bound to return to the bench whenever the rookie is ready to play. Still, what a luxury it is for Golden State to be able to seamlessly toggle Thompson between reserve and starting roles as necessary, just the latest indication of the four-time champion accepting inevitable realities of the latter stages of his career.
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