Klay Thompson Brushes Off Free Agency Questions With Uncertain Warriors Future
The Golden State Warriors were eliminated from the NBA playoffs by the Sacramento Kings on Tuesday night, and the franchise is now facing some significant questions.
First among them is what the Warriors will do about Klay Thompson. On Wednesday, Thompson blew off any discussion of his impending free agency.
When asked about being a free agent, Thompson acted surprised, wondering why none of the assembled reporters wanted to talk about the season. He admonished the media for "not wanting to live in the present," then noted he had until July 1 to worry about free agency.
Thompson may not want to think about that yet, but others certainly will. He just finished a five-year, $189.9 million contract with arguably the worst season of his career. He finished the 2023-24 campaign averaging 17.9 points, 3.3 rebounds and 2.3 assists in 29.7 minutes per game. He hit 43.2% of his shots from the field and 38.7% from three-point range. Thompson is not the player he was when he was making All-Star teams five years ago, though he still has value.
The Warriors have decisions to make. Thompson is 34, on the back side of his career and will almost certainly be making far less money next year. The Warriors are already over the luxury tax threshold for the 2024-25 season, though there are some moves they can make to lessen that burden.
Still, when looking at the NBA landscape and the Warriors' place in it, the franchise might be best served moving on from Thompson and continue getting younger. That will be a difficult decision emotionally, though. Golden State selected Thompson with the 11th pick in the 2011 draft and he has won four championships with the organization. He partnered with Stephen Curry as the "splash brothers," an era that not only changed the franchise, but had an enormous impact on the NBA as a whole. It would be hard to break up that pairing, or the trio of Curry, Thompson and Draymond Green.
No one knows what the Warriors or Thompson will decide to do. He's right, there is time for that to play out, but it's foolish to act like no one is thinking about it yet.
