After 11 years with the Golden State Warriors, Klay Thompson finally left the franchise this summer to sign with the Dallas Mavericks. Even in his current state, losing Klay is a major blow for the Warriors and his former teammate Festus Ezeli explained why in a recent appearance on NBA Today.
“You don’t get to feel this as a fan but in the locker room, Klay Thompson was such a huge boost for morale because of how low-maintenance he was,” said Ezeli. “The chemistry between Steph and Klay, put them on both sides of the court… it’s making the defense go ‘Who do I follow? Do I follow the best shooter in the world or the second-best shooter in the world?'”
Ezeli was only in the league for three seasons, but he was there to witness their rise to greatness which began with their first title run in 2015. At the time, the NBA was still operating on old traditions, and by the time Curry had his first MVP campaign, the opposition had no way to contain it.
As Curry was on the rise to superstardom, Klay Thompson was right there alongside him and it was his presence that made them so hard to defeat. In 11 seasons for the Warriors, Klay averaged 19.6 points, 3.3 rebounds, and 2.3 assists per game on 45.3% shooting. He’s a 4x champion, 4x All-Star, and 2x All-NBA player.
The shooting of Curry and Klay combined made the Warriors nearly unbeatable from 2015 and 2016, when they finished first in the west for back-to-back years, including when they went 73-9. They split the Finals those years, winning in 2015 before losing a 3-1 series lead in 2016.
Klay continued to be crucial for the Warriors for their next title runs with Kevin Durant in 2017 and 2018. Over time, he became a treasured and valued member of the dynasty who had made history with some of the greatest players ever.
But after suffering a series of season-ending injuries in back-to-back seasons, Klay missed out on years of his prime and he has yet to be the same since coming back. His numbers fell across the board and worst of all was his three-point efficiency which went from 44% in the 2017-18 campaign to 38.5% in 2022.
Fast forward to last season and things turned downright ugly for the Warriors. As the team struggled to win games, and Thompson struggled to find his shot, the relationship between players was deteriorating in the locker room and it was destroying the chemistry between the main core group.
Thompson was miserable in his final tenure with the Warriors and he left it all behind in pursuit of a fresh start this summer. Now, he’ll have the chance to make some more history in a new jersey alongside Luka Doncic and Kyrie Irving. The Warriors, meanwhile, will have to find a way to carry on without him.
After finishing 10th in the West last season, they will have to somehow move up the standings without their trusted shooting guard Klay Thompson lighting up the backcourt. Stephen Curry will have to rely on other guys like Andrew Wiggins, Jonathan Kuminga, and Moses Moody to fill in the gaps. Even then, it may not be enough to keep up with the competitive Western Conference.
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