© Kyle Terada-USA TODAY Sports
OAKLAND — Patrick McCaw has made major progress since he suffered a scary-looking back injury on March 31.
In Game 6 of the Western Conference Finals, the Warriors guard checked into the game in the waning minutes, marking his first NBA appearance since the injury. He scored two points and grabbed two rebounds. In Game 7, he played one minute and did not record a statistic.
With the NBA Finals set to kick off at 6 pm Thursday, McCaw may be in line for a more involved role, as Steve Kerr alluded to pregame. Andre Iguodala will not play, and the Warriors are lacking guard depth, with Quinn Cook and Nick Young as the only bench contributors.
“He could play a few more minutes now that he has gotten his feet wet and had a few more games of court work,” Kerr said. “He had some knee soreness a couple weeks ago, and that is now gone. So, he is feeling healthier. There is no question he could play a bigger role in this series than he did in the last one.”
McCaw averaged four points, 1.4 rebounds, and 1.4 assists in 16.9 minutes per game this year, his second career NBA season.
He has come a long way since his hard fall, which Kerr called the “scariest thing I have experienced on a basketball floor.” McCaw suffered a lumbosacral bone bruise.
Two months later, he will play in the NBA Finals, a thought that seemed unlikely at the time of his injury.
