Klay Thompson needed a fresh start after spending 13 years with the Warriors, and the Dallas Mavericks offered him just that.
But the Los Angeles Lakers didn’t do that.
After Thompson reportedly decided to move to either the Mavericks or the Los Angeles Lakers, many — including the shooter’s father — wondered why he didn’t move to Hollywood. In fact, the situation in Los Angeles seemed very similar to the situation in San Francisco, in Thompson’s eyes.
“But playing for the Lakers seemed a lot like playing for the Warriors,” ESPN’s Ramona Shelburne and Kendra Andrews report In a feature article on Wednesday, one source close to him said, “Is this going to be like replacing one fish tank with another?”
“All Thompson has talked about in the past two weeks since he decided and accepted that his time with the Warriors was over was his desire to gain ‘new experiences’ and a ‘fresh start.’ And Dallas seemed like the perfect place to do that.”
Thompson left Golden State after the team failed to advance to the playoffs for the first time as the three-man trio of him, Steph Curry and Draymond Green recovered. Thompson famously did not make a single shot in 10 attempts in Golden State’s final playoff game against the Sacramento Kings in April.
The Lakers also finished the 2023-24 regular season in seventh place in the Western Conference, losing to the Denver Nuggets in the first round, a huge disappointment considering the hype a team featuring LeBron James, Anthony Davis, D’Angelo Russell and Austin Reeves gets on a daily basis.
Would Thompson have faced a similar situation with Los Angeles? Maybe.
No one can say for sure what role he will play with the Lakers. Maybe Thompson will sit on the bench behind Reeves or Russell the way he sat behind then-Warriors rookie Brandin Podziemski. Or maybe Thompson will start.
Regardless, Thompson is sure to be scrutinized—much more than he was in the San Francisco Bay Area—for any minor misstep. Los Angeles sports fans are among the most passionate, and they carry uncomfortable expectations, and the 34-year-old Thompson certainly doesn’t need any of that in his life right now—especially as a four-time NBA champion.
Instead, Thompson sought to balance title competition, opportunity and lack of attention, which he ultimately found with Dallas.
Thompson would have been pleased to know that the team he grew up supporting, and which his broadcaster-turned-father still works for, wanted him so badly. It also doesn’t hurt that one of the best basketball players in the world was willing to take a pay cut for him, Shelburne & Andrews reported, citing sources.
But it seems James and Los Angeles didn’t make the right choice for Thompson, as the former Warriors star needs to move away from his struggles in California and look for greener pastures in the Lone Star State.
The Mavericks, who were eliminated in the NBA Finals by the Boston Celtics, were one step away from becoming the champion this season. The team will be in contention again next season.
Thompson enters a new situation with new players eager to stay competitive, while the Warriors and Lakers have been years since their glory days while playing roughly the same lineups.
It’s safe to say Thompson made the right decision by joining Dallas over Los Angeles.
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