Warriors Declined Klay Thompson's Two-Year, $40M Proposal One Month Before Free Agency

[RealGM Wiretap]

Klay Thompson's agent, Greg Lawrence, proposed at least four different contracts to the Golden State Warriors by the time the 2024 offseason arrived, reports ESPN's Ramona Shelburne. The Warriors always responded by asking him to wait until they explore other deals to improve their roster. The Warriors pursued trades for LeBron James, Mikal Bridges, Paul George and Lauri Markkanen. 

The Warriors wanted Thompson to stay with the team, but not a starting role. Thompson was not thrilled with the idea, but playing an Andre Iguodala-type role wasn't a deal-breaker for him.

Around June 1st, Thompson's camp made their final offer to the Warriors indicating he would accept a two-year deal for approximately $40 million per season. The Warriors still said that they couldn't agree to the deal. Approximately two weeks later, sources say Thompson realized he needed an entirely new experience. Thompson had been miserable trying to reclaim the previous version of himself with the Warriors and decided he would try to fight for something new.

Via Ramona Shelburne/ESPN

[elmdawgg69]

lol this bum started high and then said he’d settle for two years $80 million guaranteed? Of course any team will reject that terrible proposal. Who does he think he is? Giannis? Now we see why he’s getting 3 years $50 million… because no team would give him any more than that.

[NUMBERICA]

lol this bum started high and then said he’d settle for two years $80 million guaranteed? Of course any team will reject that terrible proposal. Who does he think he is? Giannis? Now we see why he’s getting 3 years $50 million… because no team would give him any more than that.

Two years $40 million. That’s $20 million a year.

[Speedlot]

is it 2 years 80 or 2 years 40 mil

[kenvin100]

lol this bum started high and then said he’d settle for two years $80 million guaranteed? Of course any team will reject that terrible proposal. Who does he think he is? Giannis? Now we see why he’s getting 3 years $50 million… because no team would give him any more than that.

This bum is a 4x NBA Champion & a pivotal piece of the GS dynasty. Take away the injury, Warriors may have won another ring. I understand the frustration. I'm quite suprised they kept Draymond tbh. Although another 4x champ, his antics on & off the court were concerning. It also felt he's pivoting towards a TV/media career very quickly

[HiRez]

is it 2 years 80 or 2 years 40 mil

2/40. Which is still high based on his age, injuries, and decline (he can still shoot, but his defense fell off a cliff). Can't really blame him for asking but the Warriors were right to tell him they can't do it yet. He should understand that signing him early would seriously limit their options while they're looking for trades.

On the other hand, they reportedly offered him 2/48 last year and he turned it down. Apparently he did really want that 3rd year and got it from Dallas so good for him.

[puja21]

Apparently he did really want that 3rd year and got it from Dallas so good for him.

No that doesn't make sense if he was willing to take 2y 40m now

[HiRez]

Apparently he did really want that 3rd year and got it from Dallas so good for him.

No that doesn't make sense if he was willing to take 2y 40m now

It does make sense because he thought his value was higher than it was. He's still a good shooter but among players who took at least 5 3s last year, he was #35 in the league in 3P%. That's not elite anymore and his defense has become awful because he does not have the mobility he used to. And his value to the Warriors in particular fell because of their luxury tax situation. They're trying to build something to give Steph one or two more shots at a championship and they can't do that if they're paying Klay a large amount of money when he can't be a legitimate 2-way threat for them anymore. That became more and more apparent as the year went on.

[fuller4379]

lol this bum started high and then said he’d settle for two years $80 million guaranteed? Of course any team will reject that terrible proposal. Who does he think he is? Giannis? Now we see why he’s getting 3 years $50 million… because no team would give him any more than that.

Klay Thompson was a pivotal piece to their four championship teams. What has your bum ass done?

[puja21]

Apparently he did really want that 3rd year and got it from Dallas so good for him.

No that doesn't make sense if he was willing to take 2y 40m now

It does make sense because he thought his value was higher than it was. He's still a good shooter but among players who took at least 5 3s last year, he was #35 in the league in 3P%. That's not elite anymore and his defense has become awful because he does not have the mobility he used to. And his value to the Warriors in particular fell because of their luxury tax situation. They're trying to build something to give Steph one or two more shots at a championship and they can't do that if they're paying Klay a large amount of money when he can't be a legitimate 2-way threat for them anymore. That became more and more apparent as the year went on.

None of that validates "he wanted the 3rd year" -- he just asked for 2 years in June

[mickie]

is it 2 years 80 or 2 years 40 mil

According to the article it’s $40M per season

“Around June 1st, Thompson's camp made their final offer to the Warriors indicating he would accept a two-year deal for approximately $40 million per season.”

[mickie]

is it 2 years 80 or 2 years 40 mil

2/40. Which is still high based on his age, injuries, and decline (he can still shoot, but his defense fell off a cliff). Can't really blame him for asking but the Warriors were right to tell him they can't do it yet. He should understand that signing him early would seriously limit their options while they're looking for trades.

On the other hand, they reportedly offered him 2/48 last year and he turned it down. Apparently he did really want that 3rd year and got it from Dallas so good for him.

Read the article again.. $40M per season is what

[BigTex]

Apparently he did really want that 3rd year and got it from Dallas so good for him.

No that doesn't make sense if he was willing to take 2y 40m now

Makes perfect sense if he thinks he would be difficult to obtain a contract for more than $10 million in two years.

[HiRez]

is it 2 years 80 or 2 years 40 mil

2/40. Which is still high based on his age, injuries, and decline (he can still shoot, but his defense fell off a cliff). Can't really blame him for asking but the Warriors were right to tell him they can't do it yet. He should understand that signing him early would seriously limit their options while they're looking for trades.

On the other hand, they reportedly offered him 2/48 last year and he turned it down. Apparently he did really want that 3rd year and got it from Dallas so good for him.

Read the article again.. $40M per season is what

It does say that, which is insane. Can't believe he was asking for that. All the more reason to reject it swiftly, I mean WTF Klay, he's not even a $20M/yr player let alone double that.

[puja21]

Apparently he did really want that 3rd year and got it from Dallas so good for him.

No that doesn't make sense if he was willing to take 2y 40m now

Makes perfect sense if he thinks he would be difficult to obtain a contract for more than $10 million in two years.

Still no

Article says asked GSW for 2, so he was willing to take 2 and stay -- they just weren't offering it

[hyberx]

$40M per season for two? That's greedy from Klay and his camp. Can't blame them for asking for the sky. Also can't blame the Ws to flat out saying no. Nobody sane would have done that contract.

The Ws paid him handsomely for his last contract while he sat and recovered from those two injuries that sidelined him for 2 and a half years. You can't say Klay wasn't rewarded for his championship run.

[Future Coach]

2/40. Which is still high based on his age, injuries, and decline (he can still shoot, but his defense fell off a cliff). Can't really blame him for asking but the Warriors were right to tell him they can't do it yet. He should understand that signing him early would seriously limit their options while they're looking for trades.

On the other hand, they reportedly offered him 2/48 last year and he turned it down. Apparently he did really want that 3rd year and got it from Dallas so good for him.

Read the article again.. $40M per season is what

It does say that, which is insane. Can't believe he was asking for that. All the more reason to reject it swiftly, I mean WTF Klay, he's not even a $20M/yr player let alone double that.

That's the typically sloppy RealGM poor copy/paste of the article.

From the actual source, it is 2 years for $40M total ($20M per season)...

Two weeks prior, Thompson's camp had made one final offer to the Warriors, a two-year deal for roughly $20 million per season, sources said. The response was the same as it had been for nearly a year: We just can't do it yet.

https://www.espn.com/nba/story/_/id/40484168/why-klay-thompson-era-ended-golden-state-warriors

Unfortunately, per usual, treat anything that RealGM puts out as "news" with some skepticism and click on the actual source, as RealGM has gotten increasingly sloppy and/or inaccurate in recent years as the concept of proof-reading is apparently lost here...


Another interesting little bit from the ESPN article:

Sources said James was willing to take less and the Lakers were trying to make trades that would've cleared four years and nearly $80 million for Thompson.

James had several deep conversations with Thompson about the idea of playing together, sources said.

But something about playing for the Lakers apparently felt too much like playing for the Warriors. As one source close to him put it, "Would this be trading one fishbowl for another?"

[dk1115]

I thought the Warriors would give him 2/$40M

[Darthlukey]

Read the article again.. $40M per season is what

It does say that, which is insane. Can't believe he was asking for that. All the more reason to reject it swiftly, I mean WTF Klay, he's not even a $20M/yr player let alone double that.

That's the typically sloppy RealGM poor copy/paste of the article.

From the actual source, it is 2 years for $40M total ($20M per season)...

Two weeks prior, Thompson's camp had made one final offer to the Warriors, a two-year deal for roughly $20 million per season, sources said. The response was the same as it had been for nearly a year: We just can't do it yet.

https://www.espn.com/nba/story/_/id/40484168/why-klay-thompson-era-ended-golden-state-warriors

Unfortunately, per usual, treat anything that RealGM puts out as "news" with some skepticism and click on the actual source, as RealGM has gotten increasingly sloppy and/or inaccurate in recent years as the concept of proof-reading is apparently lost here...


Another interesting little bit from the ESPN article:

Sources said James was willing to take less and the Lakers were trying to make trades that would've cleared four years and nearly $80 million for Thompson.

James had several deep conversations with Thompson about the idea of playing together, sources said.

But something about playing for the Lakers apparently felt too much like playing for the Warriors. As one source close to him put it, "Would this be trading one fishbowl for another?"

If 40 over 2 seasons is true, gsw are in the wrong here. They owe klay the loyalty without going overboard IMO

[Pickled Prunes]

It does say that, which is insane. Can't believe he was asking for that. All the more reason to reject it swiftly, I mean WTF Klay, he's not even a $20M/yr player let alone double that.

That's the typically sloppy RealGM poor copy/paste of the article.

From the actual source, it is 2 years for $40M total ($20M per season)...

Two weeks prior, Thompson's camp had made one final offer to the Warriors, a two-year deal for roughly $20 million per season, sources said. The response was the same as it had been for nearly a year: We just can't do it yet.

https://www.espn.com/nba/story/_/id/40484168/why-klay-thompson-era-ended-golden-state-warriors

Unfortunately, per usual, treat anything that RealGM puts out as "news" with some skepticism and click on the actual source, as RealGM has gotten increasingly sloppy and/or inaccurate in recent years as the concept of proof-reading is apparently lost here...


Another interesting little bit from the ESPN article:

Sources said James was willing to take less and the Lakers were trying to make trades that would've cleared four years and nearly $80 million for Thompson.

James had several deep conversations with Thompson about the idea of playing together, sources said.

But something about playing for the Lakers apparently felt too much like playing for the Warriors. As one source close to him put it, "Would this be trading one fishbowl for another?"

If 40 over 2 seasons is true, gsw are in the wrong here. They owe klay the loyalty without going overboard IMO

There is no right or wrong. GSW didn't want him back at 4th starter money. If he was coming back, it would be in a reserve role and at reserve money.