Inside Klay Thompson's return after more than two years away: 'I know how good I am'

MAKING HIS WAY through the Golden State Warriors locker room following a preseason win over the Los Angeles Lakers, Zaza Pachulia heard the familiar sound of a ball bouncing on the organization's practice floor.

Pachulia assumed one of the Warriors' young players was getting some extra shots in. What the longtime NBA big man and Warriors consultant saw next surprised him.

He found Klay Thompson, dressed in a full uniform, shooting by himself. The 31-year-old has been away from the game for over two years while rehabbing a pair of career-altering injuries. He tore the ACL in his left knee in Game 6 of the 2019 NBA Finals and his right Achilles in November 2020.

"That's a day when he already had…