Klay Thompson. Easily one of my favorite athletes of all time. He should have played his entire career as a Warrior, but alas, it was not to be. This offseason, he opted to sign with Dallas. He didn’t even wait for the Warriors to make a matching offer. That kinda makes it sound like Klay moving was all on him, but that’s not true. He wanted the Warriors to want him, to prioritize keeping him…and they didn’t. Klay, much diminished by his two-and-a-half years of devastating leg injuries have made him a role player rather than a star. He didn’t sign max money in Dallas, but it was more (years, not money, apparently) than we’d offered when talks had happened a year ago. Klay wasn’t going to be a focal point anymore. The Warriors negotiated as though they were willing to lose him…and they did.
Sigh.
I hate it. HATE IT. It’s legit emotional thinking about everything we’ve been through as fans watching the up and downs of Klay Thompson. He is the Warriors along with Steph and Dray. And now he’s playing in another uniform, having been spurned, having chosen to leave a team that, well, maybe they did want him, but they didn’t need him. Devastating.
Well…he came back to the bay tonight. The employees lined up to cheer for him as he walked in. The giveaway in the arena was Captain Klay hats, because he famously used to take his boat across the bay to work. They did a video tribute for him that left nary a dry eye…and then proceeded to play a pretty damn good game. The Warriors won anyway. Steph took over, especially down the stretch. 37 points. A night-night 3. Vintage Steph against vintage Klay. Oof.
You’re a legend, Klay, and you’ll forever be a Warrior. I do understand why you left, I just hate that it happened this way.