The Golden State Warriors enter the offseason with a big decision to make as Klay Thompson‘s contract runs out. Draymond Green, who was in a similar situation last year, made it clear he wants Thompson to stay, but would totally understand if he prefers to go elsewhere.
“I personally want Klay to come back. We all do. But if Klay ultimately decides that he wants something else for himself, for his life, [he’s] got my utmost love and support because what we’ve done together can never be taken away,” Green said during a recent episode of his podcast, via Sports Illustrated. “The brotherhood that we built will not change at all. But we do want to finish.”
Green and Thompson have played an instrumental role in the Warriors‘ four championships in the last decade, contributing to one of the greatest dynasties in sports history.
But Klay left a lot to be desired this season, averaging 17.9 points per game while shooting 43.2 of his field goals with 38.7 from beyond the arc. He hit rock bottom in the Play-In loss to the Sacramento Kings, finishing the game scoreless as he missed all 10 field goal attempts and six three-point shots. Even so, Green hopes the Warriors’ core can run things back in 2024-25.
“I ultimately hope that he’s back here, that we can all close this thing out together the way we’ve done it, continue to chase after the things we know are out there for us, which is winning championships, continuing to bring more success to a franchise than anyone can imagine. Besides Joe [Lacob]. Joe definitely imagined, but nobody else imagined. You don’t have the opportunity to finish with the guys you started with often, and we have that opportunity,” Green added.
Stephen Curry wants Klay Thompson to stay
Stephen Curry echoed Green’s sentiment. Even though the Warriors’ season didn’t go according to plan as they were eliminated from playoff contention prematurely, he still hopes both Draymond and Klay stay around.
“I can never see myself not with those two guys,” Curry said. “I understand this league changes, and there’s so many things that go into it. I know they want to win, and I want to win. That’s all I’m worried about.”