Getty Klay Thompson reacts during a April 12 game against the New Orleans Pelicans.
The question of Klay Thompson‘s free agency will hang over the Golden State Warriors until it’s answered this summer. Will he leave the only NBA team he’s ever called home?
General manager Mike Dunleavy Jr. clarified the team’s stance on Thompson’s free agency in a June 24 press conference. “We want him back,” Dunleavy told reporters.
A five-time All-Star, Thompson is approaching his 12th NBA campaign. But as an unrestricted free agent, only he can decide what uniform he’ll be wearing for it.
Thompson played 77 games for Golden State last season, averaging 17.9 points per game on 38% shooting from behind the arc. His list of suitors won’t be short, but no team has a history with Thompson like the Warriors.
Teams like the Orlando Magic and Philadelphia 76ers have already been mentioned as suitors.
Thompson, Warriors Talks ‘Frozen’
Anthony Slater of The Athletic reports that Thompson’s negotiations with the Warriors are non-existent.
“Despite a wide open negotiation window, there isn’t a one-year, two-year or three-year deal on the table,” Slater wrote on June 22. “Because nothing is currently on the table, according to league sources. There’s been no productive discussion between the Warriors and Thompson or his representatives.
In a June 24 column for Sporting News, Stephen Noh predicts Thompson would land a three-year, $70 million deal with the Magic.
“There have been signs of discontent between Thompson and the Warriors,” Noh wrote. “He deleted all traces of the team from his Instagram account, and the team has hinted that negotiations may be tough after the two sides couldn’t come to an agreement on an extension during the year. The Warriors are trying to get out of the tax, and that may mean moving on from the sharpshooter.
But in regards to Thompson’s primary suitor, Slater says there’s no traction on a deal as of June 22. “There has been no traction between Thompson and the Orlando Magic, according to league sources, despite some initial mutual interest,” Slater added.
Slater reported on the likelihood that Thompson prioritizes a fresh start over a long term deal, provided the money is right.
“..It has become increasingly conceivable, according to league sources, that Thompson will decide to leave regardless, searching for a fresh start in a different environment, detached from some of the built-up friction of the previous couple seasons,” Slater wrote.
Thompson is looking for an inarguably earned payday for a team with whom he’s won four championships. But if they’re to give themselves a chance to win a fifth, they can’t pay him what he wants.
Dunleavy Striving to Be ‘Reasonable and Rational’
The hangup in Thompson’s free agency is the exact reason most would be surprised to see him leave: his history with the team.
Dunleavy didn’t shy from the struggles of differentiating business from friendship in dealing with a longtime player.
“I think being reasonable and rational, that’s always how I’m going to operate but to say about a guy like Klay Thompson, who’s meant so much to this franchise,” Dunleavy said. “To completely strip the emotion away from it, I think that’s almost impossible.”
Thompson’s been on a downslide since suffering a torn ACL in Game 6 of the 2019 NBA Finals. Last season is the first time he’s come off the bench since his rookie season. He spent 14 games coming off the bench.
“I think it’s about what the right thing that works for the franchise and the player and the role he is in,” Dunleavy continued. “Factoring all of those things in is what’s most important, and that’s what is taking place and what we’re looking at. … There are probably varying degrees of what that value is, but that’s on me to figure out what the right amount is for our team.”