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Klay Thompson on potential move from Warriors: 'I wouldn't want to go anywhere else' – CBS Sports
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The new-look Golden State Warriors are gearing up for the 2023-24 campaign, but still have the core group that powered them to four championships in the last seven seasons. Stephen Curry and Draymond Green are inked to deals that will keep them together until at least 2025-26. While Klay Thompson is on an expiring contract and hasn’t agreed to an extension yet, he can’t see himself changing teams.
“I wouldn’t want to go anywhere else,” Thomspon told The Athletic. “To play for one franchise, man? That’s so rare. In any sport. Football. Baseball. Basketball. Australian Rules Football. To play for one club is insane. It’s some real legendary stuff. Even what Udonis Haslem did. He’s revered in Miami. Locally. That’s what I cherish. Going around the country, going around the world and people from Northern California or Warriors fans in general are just so prideful about the Warriors. And I was here before banners were hung up.”
Thompson, 33, is entering his 13th NBA season and has been helping the Warriors build a dynasty since he was drafted 11th overall in 2011. The prolific sharpshooter has made the fourth-most 3-pointers (2,123) since entering the NBA despite missing all of the 2019-20 and 2020-21 seasons because of ACL and Achilles injuries. His return to the hardwood got off to a rocky start, but he ended up leading the league with 301 made triples last season while converting his long-distance shots at a 41.2% clip. While Thompson’s struggles were heavily scrutinized at times, he’s confident in his unique talent after becoming the third player in NBA history to make over 300 shots from beyond the arc in a season.
“I’m not going to sell myself short. I know how incredible that is,” Thompson said. “To do that after an ACL and an Achilles, that’s hard work.”
Thompson also acknowledged that he ran out of steam after watching film of his poor shooting during the Warriors’ loss to the Los Angeles Lakers in last year’s NBA Playoffs.
“I learned that I was fried. I was tired,” Thompson said. “All my shots in that Game 6 were short. They were all on line. They were just short. I don’t know if that’s mental fatigue or physical fatigue. But it happens. Then on top of that, I learned as I get older, I’ll have to rely on my teammates and my smarts to be as efficient scoring the ball as I possibly can be.”
Thompson’s long-term future with the team is up in the air, but the Dubs did move movie Jordan Poole to the Washington Wizards and bring in Chris Paul over the offseason. A future Thomspon decision was in mind when they made that decision. Green and Andrew Wiggins agreed to slightly discounted deals over the summer, and Thompson might end up doing the same.
Thompson’s focused on the upcoming season for now, though.
I’m in such a great spot right now. I’m in good shape. Come opening night, I’ll be in the best shape possible,” Thompson said.
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