DALLAS — The Golden State Warriors play in Dallas on Wednesday night, and guard Klay Thompson is taking the opportunity to honor a former Dallas Cowboys player and friend.
Thompson arrived at the American Airlines Center on Wednesday wearing a No. 89 Cowboys jersey, which was the number for former tight end Gavin Escobar.
Escobar, 31, and a fellow rock climber died while climbing in California in September 2022. Firefighters attempted a rescue at Tahquitz Rock in the Idyllwild area but found the two dead when they finally reached the two climbers.
Escobar was drafted by Dallas in the second round of the 2013 NFL Draft and played for the Cowboys from 2013 to 2016 in a backup role.
He also grew up in the city of Rancho Santa Margarita, California, which is also Thompson's hometown. According to the Warriors, Thompson and Escobar were friends.
After leaving football in 2019, Escobar became a firefighter for the Long Beach Fire Department. The department said he was hired in February 2022.
Escobar had a wife and two children.
