Klay Thompson may have just played his last game for the Golden State Warriors, with the four-time NBA champion perhaps now heading toward free agency after a discouraging loss that ended a disappointing season.
“There have been no substantive talks between the team and Thompson’s representatives about a new deal for months now, sources said,” wrote Zach Lowe. “Both sides surely took note of the four-year, $135 million extension Jrue Holiday — almost exactly Thompson’s age — signed with the [Boston] Celtics last week. Thompson will draw some interest in free agency, league sources said.”
If it is the end of Thompson’s time with the Warriors, it could not have gone much worse for him. He shot 0-for-10 from the field during their 118-94 loss to the Sacramento Kings in the play-in round.
The defeat is being viewed and called by many as the likely end to the Warriors dynasty and recognized as maybe the final outing for the trio of Stephen Curry, Draymond Green and Thompson as teammates.
Though Thompson will turn 35 years old during next season and has suffered significant injuries in the past, the sharpshooter is likely to draw interest around the league should he not re-sign with the Warriors and hit the open market.
"Klay Thompson is very open to seeing his marketplace in free agency…It's gonna be the hardest call in his life to make if he does end up finding another spot to leave, as far as calling Steph Curry, calling Draymond Green, calling them and saying I'm gone."@ShamsCharania… pic.twitter.com/ujOoZ0YPI1
— Run It Back (@RunItBackFDTV) April 17, 2024
Thompson already has been linked to the Orlando Magic and Detroit Pistons as possible landing spots. However, Warriors head coach Steve Kerr said the team needs and wants Thompson back.
“We need Klay back,” Steve Kerr said. Kerr added “he still has good years left. And I speak for everyone, we want him back.”
— Marc J. Spears (@MarcJSpears) April 17, 2024
This season, Thompson averaged 17.9 points per game after averaging at least 20.0 points per game in each of the prior seven seasons he was able to play. He sat out two full regular seasons dealing with knee and Achilles injuries before returning during the 2021-22 campaign.
His comeback helped the Warriors win the 2022 NBA Championship, their fourth title in an eight-season span. Though they won 10 of their final 12 regular season games this season, their attempt to add a fifth title since 2015 ended quite abruptly with the blowout loss to the Kings, against whom they survived a seven-game first-round series last year before being eliminated by the Los Angeles Lakers in the second round.
Golden State went 46-36 during a tumultuous 2023-24 season that included two suspensions of Green for hitting opponents. The team also dealt with the tragic death of assistant coach Dejan Milojevic.
With Curry recently turning 36 years old, the window may have indeed closed on the Warriors’ glory days, so perhaps Thompson will look for and possibly find a better opportunity elsewhere.
