The Surprising Financials Behind Klay Thompson's Exit From Mavericks

After nearly two months of rumors, Klay Thompson and the Dallas Mavericks agreed to a buyout on Friday afternoon, paving the way for the sharpshooter to join Giannis Antetokounmpo on the Miami Heat.

The Mavericks tried to trade him, but it was always going to be difficult to trade Thompson at his age and cap hit. With them agreeing to a buyout, the hope was that he'd be willing to give up a decent chunk of his salary.

And boy, did he.

According to Mike Scotto of HoopsHype, Thompson gave up roughly $9.8 million of the $17.5 million he was owed to enter free agency, well over half of what he was owed.

Klay Thompson gave back roughly $9.8 million in his buyout agreement with the Dallas Mavericks, league sources told @hoopshype. As widely reported, Thompson now plans to join the Miami Heat once he clears waivers.
— Michael Scotto (@MikeAScotto) August 22, 2026

Thompson is set to sign a two-year, $13 million deal with the Miami Heat, which will have a player option in the second year. Depending on the structure of that deal, Thompson likely gave up between $3 and $4 million in total to leave the Mavs. He might be getting that additional year, but he probably could've gotten more if he wanted.

Even if he's not at the top of his game anymore, Thompson is still a valuable sharpshooter that a lot of teams wanted before he made his decision to go to the Heat, but not to the point that they would've wanted to trade anything.

At this point, Thompson wants to be competing for championships, and he believes the Miami Heat give him the best chance to do so while giving him good playing time. As defenders crash on Antetokounmpo, that could leave him with the chance to receive a lot of open looks.

Mar 27, 2026; Portland, Oregon, USA; Dallas Mavericks guard Klay Thompson (31) looks on during the second half against the Portland Trail Blazers at Moda Center. Mandatory Credit: Troy Wayrynen-Imagn Images | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect

Dallas Mavericks Cap Sheet After Klay Thompson's Exit

The Dallas Mavericks will still be on the books for roughly $7.6 million of Thompson's salary, but someone from the roster had to go. They were at 16 standard contracts and are now at 15 with this buyout.

This leaves them with a total salary of roughly $214 million, which is well over the salary cap, but that doesn't matter much anymore. The more important thing is that they'll be around $12 million short of the tax line. They were already about $2.3 million short of it, but this gives them some more wiggle room.

Wiggle room for what, you might ask?

The Mavericks still have about $7 million remaining from the Anthony Davis trade exception created in February, which will expire around the trade deadline this coming season. Most of it was used to take on Zaccharie Risacher, but that's still a decent chunk of change to use to take in other salary.

They also have exactly $12 million of their nontaxpayer midlevel exception open, which will expire at the end of the season. That can't be an accident, and it allows the Mavericks to be aggressive in finding bad salaries to take on to add draft capital.

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