One half of the Golden State Warriors’ ‘splash brothers’, Klay Thompson, is set to enter NBA free-agency in the summer of 2024.
Although the Warriors organization want to bring him back to the team, they first have to find a way to balance their pursuit for championships with their payroll and luxury taxes, according to NBA journalist Mark Medina.
Golden State Warriors news – Klay Thompson
During the 2023 off-season, the Golden State Warriors ensured they tied down an integral member of their championship-winning core to a long-term deal in Draymond Green, by re-signing the forward to a four-year, $100 million deal, as reported by The Athletic’s Shams Charania and Anthony Slater.
Green joined his teammate Stephen Curry, who last season became the NBA’s leading three-point scorer of all time, in committing to Dub Nation long-term. The two-time MVP signed a max extension back in 2022, keeping him under contract with the team through the 2025-26 season, per Spotrac.
One remaining member of the Warriors’ trio who have so far won four NBA titles together, Klay Thompson’s future is a little less certain, at least on paper. Warriors GM, Joe Lacob recently sat down with Tim Kawakami of The Athletic to discuss the Golden State Warriors’ future, with him confidently believing that the sharp-shooter, whose current contract is set to expire next July, will follow suit like his teammates and re-sign with the team.
Lacob went on to explain that some ‘very brief’ discussions between the front-office and the 33-year-old’s agents had already taken place as the organization ‘clearly’ want him to remain a member of the Warriors for the ‘rest of his career’. The Los Angeles native’s father, Mychal Thompson – a former NBA player himself – sat down for an exclusive interview with Mark Medina, via Sportskeeda, where he stated that along with Curry and Green, his son “should never wear another uniform” in the NBA.
Thompson Sr. further went on to suggest that the five-time All-Star, who is set to enter only his second full season since his two serious leg injuries which kept him out of action for back-to-back seasons in 2019-20 and 2020-21, could return to performing at a “high All-Star level again”. However, he was quick to note that it would take something special to stand out in the Western Conference, simply due to the amount of talent on show at the guard position.
If Klay Thompson does live up to those expectations, then he may force the Warriors’ hand in giving him a more lucrative contract offer, which could impact the team’s financial flexibility in the future.
Will the Warriors let Thompson enter free agency before signing him to an extension?
Medina believes that while the Warriors’ intentions to re-sign Thompson are clear, they still need to be diligent in how they handle their finances, after already taking a heavy-hit on their payroll for this upcoming season as they appear to have built their roster with a win-now mentality in mind.
This could have an effect on the timing of when they will work with Thompson and his agents on agreeing to a new deal.
Speaking to GIVEMESPORT, the journalist said…
“The Warriors themselves have made it clear internally that they’re likely going to wait for Klay Thompson to become a free agent. They just want to be diligent with a few things. While Championships have always been the priority over payroll, they are trying to find ways to skim that because they’re paying an exorbitant number in luxury taxes. I think they also just want to be fair to see how Klay Thompson plays this season, as well as the rest of the team plays so that they can pivot accordingly.”
How did Klay Thompson perform last season?
Despite coming off the back of two serious injuries that kept him on the sidelines for a considerably lengthy time, in Thompson’s first full season back on the court, he offered glimpses of his pre-2019 self.
This was something in which he had previously admitted in an exclusive interview with ESPN’s Ramona Shelburne back in 2022 that he would never be able to return to, but had hopes of trying to get back to “90 percent of that”.
