Tension Over Max Contract Clouds Thompson-Warriors Relationship; Curry Open to Future Reunion
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SAN FRANCISCO — A long-simmering rift between Klay Thompson and Golden State’s front office traces back to the five-year, maximum-salary deal the guard signed only weeks after tearing his ACL in the 2019 NBA Finals, according to an ESPN report published Thursday.
Thompson felt ‘pushed out’
Reporters Anthony Slater and Tim MacMahon note that tensions escalated when Thompson, who later ruptured his Achilles in 2020, learned that owner Joe Lacob had privately complained about the veteran’s declining production and suggested the shooter should be grateful for the contract. A league source told ESPN, “He felt he left it all out there … and was then viewed as damaged goods.”
Golden State maintains it put a two-year, $48 million extension on the table in the summer of 2023, but Thompson’s camp questioned how firm that offer was. He ultimately departed during 2024 free agency and signed with the Mavericks, believing the Warriors had “strategically” nudged him out, the story adds.
Thompson, 35, still hopes to contend for another title and said Dallas could provide that path. Asked about ending his career back in the Bay Area, he offered no commitment. One league insider told ESPN the door would open if Stephen Curry made a direct pitch. “There’s no one that carries more weight with Klay than Steph,” the source said.
Curry agreed he would “absolutely” call his longtime backcourt partner if circumstances change: “We’d want you back … but right now it feels like a distant reality. Then again, so did him leaving.”
Horford roughly a week from return
Head coach Steve Kerr said earlier this week that Al Horford’s right sciatic nerve irritation has cleared. The 39-year-old center, however, told reporters Friday he expects to need about another seven days to finish his rehab before rejoining the lineup.
Rotation remains fluid
Kerr compared this season’s inconsistency to the pre-Jimmy Butler stretch of 2024-25 but insisted the current roster “has the answer here” and does not require a midseason trade. He trusts as many as 15 players to contribute yet prefers to use no more than 10 or 11 in a given game.
One casualty of that numbers crunch is rookie wing Will Richard, who started 12 times earlier in the fall but has logged back-to-back DNP-CDs. “I’m a huge fan,” Kerr said on 95.7 The Game, explaining he is honoring veteran roles for chemistry’s sake.
Butler, Green not untouchable
During a separate appearance on NBC Sports Bay Area, reporter Monte Poole said a trade involving Jimmy Butler or Draymond Green is “improbable” but not impossible, adding that any such move would require Curry’s sign-off. Both players have only surfaced in speculation tied to Bucks forward Giannis Antetokounmpo.
Source: Hoops Rumors
