Klay Thompson ponders NBA future as contract with Warriors nears expiration
The calendar flips to June this weekend. It’s the final month of Klay Thompson’s current contract with the Golden State Warriors, and there remains a realistic chance these are the fading days of his 13-year run with the organization.
As the decision on his future nears, there’s been no notable movement from either side toward a resolution, league sources said.
The Warriors maintain a desire to retain Thompson at the right price once other aspects of their roster retool get clarified. But they haven’t been beating down his door to work out the framework for an extension (which can be signed at any time). In turn, the 34-year-old Thompson appears ready to test free-agency waters, exploring external options for the first time in his career.
The last time Thompson, a former Washington State Cougar, was a free agent, in the summer of 2019, a quick max deal was agreed to without drama: five seasons, no team or player options, no thorny negotiations, no flirting with rival teams.
That isn’t the current landscape. Thompson spent the past month traveling and decompressing after an early, bitter end to a stressful season. But June is business time in the NBA. It’s time for Thompson and his representation to figure out what options are truly out there for him, what he wants and what it would take for Golden State to lure him back. Then it’ll be on the Warriors to offer it or not.
Thompson wants to win. Don’t expect him to chase the largest possible offer from the Detroit Pistons or Charlotte Hornets, even if that’s the correct financial or leverage move. But there are plenty of cap-space teams with a clearer upward path to contention than the Warriors. That includes Oklahoma City, Philadelphia and Orlando.
Thompson isn’t the biggest free-agency fish. Paul George, who has a player option with the Clippers next season, is the most appealing veteran likely on the open market. His decision to return to L.A. or flee elsewhere will impact others. Thompson is one of the many dominoes behind him, sitting somewhere in the Malik Monk/Kentavious Caldwell-Pope/DeMar DeRozan/D’Angelo Russell/Buddy Hield mix, depending on a team’s priorities.
Some of these cap-space teams will whiff on their first, second and even third options (and probably know that by mid-June) and need to pivot. Thompson is still durable and accurate. He played 69 and 77 games the past two seasons and hit 569 3-pointers at a 40% clip.
His age and injury history might scare a team away from throwing down a long-term commitment, but perhaps a shorter-term, bigger-money deal could appeal to both sides, similar to the Bruce Brown Jr. or Fred VanVleet structures from a summer ago. That would give teams like the Thunder, Sixers or Magic – which all could’ve used his floor spacing in the playoffs – help now without a restrictive financial situation later.
Other circumstances could theoretically materialize, like a sign-and-trade suitor or a nontaxpayer midlevel offer (which is projected to be in the $13 million range) at an appealing landing spot, but those winning cap-space teams profile as the biggest threats to pull Thompson away from the Warriors in the simplest manner.