After a rough couple of years on the sidelines with injuries, Klay Thompson finally returned to the court in January this year. Thompson wasn’t his usual self, as you’d expect of someone who missed so much time, but he was still very much a factor on the court as the Warriors went on to win the title.
Even though a significant amount of time has passed since his return, the Warriors have been very cautious with Klay. He didn’t play either of their two preseason games in Japan, and he didn’t play too many pickup games in the offseason either, as he said that tearing his Achilles during one of them in 2020 had left him with a mental block.
Klay Thompson Shares His Honest Opinion On Retirement
Considering those 2 major injuries and the fact that the now 32-year-old Klay has had limited action in the preseason, there have been some murmurs that retirement might not be too far away. Klay seems to have taken offense to a report which indicated that he is going to retire in 2024 as he went off on it.
(starts at 12:16 mark):
“Also, there’s a report out there – I have no intention of retiring in 2024. So, if you write some dumb sh** like that, just be held accountable because like that’s crazy. Just because I didn’t play 5-on-5 doesn’t mean I’m gonna retire. That is absurd.”
Connor Letourneau of the San Francisco Chronicle made an appearance on KNBR radio recently, where he stated that he wouldn’t be surprised if Thompson retired in 2024 after his contract with the Warriors ends.
“The reality is that Klay does have two more years on his deal,” Letourneau continued. “I personally would not be shocked if Klay just retired from basketball at the end of that contract. I don’t think it’s going to be between this season and next season. If he does retire in the near future it would be after his contract ends. He’s had no interest or desire to talk about extensions, even though he is extension eligible right now.”
While we can’t be sure if he was referring to Letourneau, it does seem pretty likely that he was. To be fair, Letourneau was just giving his personal opinion, which he based on the fact that Thompson wasn’t keen to talk about extensions while basically everyone else on the team seemed to be waiting in line to get one.
Klay won’t be a free agent for 2 years, though, which would explain why he isn’t bothered about a new deal at this point, even if he is eligible for one. He is more focused on getting his 5th championship ring and there is a pretty good chance he gets it.
