Klay Thompson‘s decision to join the Dallas Mavericks was considered a strong one when he agreed to the sign-and-trade in July. In fact, when asked about his optimism over playing with Luka Doncic and Kyrie Irving, Klay Thompson noted that unlike with the Golden State Warriors, he will get much cleaner looks to shoot the ball on the Mavs. Thompson suggested that this was a factor in him joining the team.
“I don’t think you can stick to me as much as you could do in the past with guys like Luka and Kyrie out there. That was attractive to me.”
Who could have predicted, in July, when Thompson made these comments at the press conference after his arrival, that he and the Mavericks would be in the situation they are in right now? Over the last month, the franchise has been flipped on its head, with nothing and no one being a sure thing.
It all started with what many consider the biggest trade in NBA history, as the Mavericks traded Luka Doncic to the Los Angeles Lakers for a package that brought them Anthony Davis. Many panned this deal at the time, as GM Nico Harrison was mortgaging the future of the franchise for a ‘win-now’ player that many felt wasn’t better than Luka.
Since then, things have only gotten worse for the team. Almost as soon as he joined the team, Anthony Davis went out with an injury after his first game. The big man was ruled out for an indefinite stretch of time, thus putting the Mavericks in a very weak position. But the death blow for the Mavs came this week, as their season ended with one swift fall.
Kyrie Irving suffered what was later revealed to be a season-ending ACL injury. This will rule him out not just for the rest of the 2024-25 campaign, but also a large portion of the 2025-26 campaign as well. In the wake of Irving’s injury, the Mavericks have considered shutting down Anthony Davis for the rest of the term as well, so as to not risk any further complications with their team.
On top of this, the Mavericks are going through an incredible injury crisis, with seven players out injured. Thompson is one of the few players still available for selection, as Jason Kidd has to cope with having no depth. We saw the implications of this during last night’s game, as Thompson and Powell walked back to a practically empty bench.
One has to wonder, with the way things have turned out, whether Klay Thompson regrets signing for the Mavericks and not joining the Lakers. The Lakers have gotten Luka Doncic and begun flying, now holding the second seed in the Western Conference and looking like a true contender for the first time in years.
Klay’s hopes when he joined the Mavericks may have been to get a fresh start. But now, as an experienced vet on a struggling team, he must help guide this team through this difficult period.
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