Klay Thompson’s decision to leave the Warriors was not an easy one.
The veteran guard agreed to sign a three-year, $50 million contract with the Dallas Mavericks on Monday, ending his 13-year career with Golden State. But his departure from the only organization he knew in the NBA was not without difficult conversations.
One was with longtime teammate and fellow Splash brother Steph Curry.
Talks with the Warriors reportedly stalled over the past two weeks before free agency began, with Thompson speaking with Curry and Thompson urging the star point guard not to pressure the Warriors front office to re-sign The Athletics. Anthony Slater reported in a feature story on Monday.
“It’s been a storied five-year road to this divorce that broke out last season, sprouted early and culminated in the past two weeks, where — in conversations with Thompson, league sources said — Stephen Curry asked not to put his emphasis on organizational influence and the temperature with management to secure Thompson’s return. Raised,” Slater wrote. “Curry’s measured voice, while it may have changed the outcome, doesn’t change the true nature of Joe Lacob and the front office’s true desire to get Thompson back.”
His wish appears to have been granted as the Warriors have reportedly had very little contact with Thompson and his representatives over the past two weeks.
Now Thompson is gone.
Curry has huge organizational clout and has often been asked by the front office to sign off on big moves, including losing Golden State star forward Paul George, a team he and longtime teammate Draymond Green were on before George left. His Los Angeles Clippers contract and reportedly agreed to sign with the Philadelphia 76ers.
Thompson made the tough decision himself, and will now join Luka Doncic, Kyrie Irving and the Western Conference-rival Mavericks against Curry and the Warriors at least three times in the 2024-25 NBA season.
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