Draymond believes Klay views his Warriors ending as a “blemish” on a career originally appeared on NBC Sports Bay Area
Draymond Green believe Clay Thompson looks his Warriors ending as a blemish on his NBA career.
On Monday’s episode of his “Draymond Green Show” podcast, Green further discussed Thompson’s departure to new co-host Baron Davis.
“I hope and pray so [Thompson] goes to Dallas and plays great. … because that will allow him to appreciate what he did here,” Green told Davis. “Like, now, if I’m being completely honest with you, I think it’s like a stain [his career]for him And Klay didn’t say it was a stain on it, by the way; That’s how I feel in my gut.”
Thompson spent his first 13 seasons with Golden State, where he won four championships, was a five-time All-Star and a two-time All-NBA selection alongside fellow future Naismith Basketball Hall of Fame selections in Steph Curry and Green.
But due to contract impasses, Thompson shockingly left the Warriors for the Dallas Mavericks this past offseason.
Green knows No. 11 will one day be retired at Chase Center in honor of the Mavericks’ new shooting guard. Until then, Green hopes Thompson can recover after his Golden State era is about over.
“So often, people in the NBA don’t have a place to call home,” Green added to Davis. “And again, regardless of how he feels, he gets a statue here, his jersey goes up, he’s a legend, this is home forever — all that. You just want him to feel how he’s supposed to feel, walking away from a place you built.
“I hope for him — because I just know who Klay Thompson is as a person — I feel like if he goes to Dallas and plays great, then he can be like, ‘Okay, I’m cool now.’ He’s so competitive, man. I just want that for him, bro.”
Thompson wanted a contract that would have aligned him with the timelines of Curry and Green. Instead, he was said to have been met cold negotiation tactics from Warriors owner Joe Lacob.
It will take time for Thompson — and all of Dub Nation — to heal from one of the Bay Area’s most iconic athletes. left for Texas. Green, however, knows that the Warriors organization will forever be Thompson’s home and that, one day, the two parties can reminisce.
