Klay Thompson was a legendary member of the Golden State Warriors dynasty, and is easily regarded as one of the greatest 3-point shooters to ever step on an NBA court. The Dallas Mavericks wing is also falling off a cliff, and that could have been unfolding with the Los Angeles Lakers instead.
If we rewind to the 2024 offseason, the Warriors organization made the unpopular decision in the Bay Area to let Thompson walk in free agency. The franchise legend looked as though he was growing frustrated with his role, fit, and otherwise in Golden State.
Klay Thompson intends to test free agency, per @ShamsCharania.
"Thompson is open to all external options in free agency coming up.”
🎥 @RunItBackFDTV pic.twitter.com/NVF5WvUp6f
— The Athletic (@TheAthletic) June 17, 2024
The summer came and it was obvious there would be no reunion between the two sides. Los Angeles put themselves in the mix for his services, and were one of the teams many believed were rumored to be in it until the end of the Thompson sweepstakes.
Lakers offered Klay Thompson '$20M per [year]' and proposed D'Angelo Russell to Warriors in sign-and-trade deal.
The Warriors declined, per @ChrisBHaynes pic.twitter.com/HcfK0PxoM0
— Bleacher Report (@BleacherReport) July 1, 2024
Ultimately, Thompson wound up joining the Mavericks. In the second year of his three-year, $50 million deal in Dallas, the wheels are already falling off the bus.
Sure, the Mavericks are a mess, and that does not help Klay whatsoever. However, the reverse is also true. Thompson's struggles have been a big contributor as to why the Mavericks have played as poorly as they have.
Lakers avoided watching Klay Thompson's steep decline in Los Angeles
Make no mistake about it, Thompson is a future member of the Naismith Basketball Hall of Fame for his role in the Golden Dynasty. In the present, Klay is being demoted for the inconsistent D'Angelo Russell in the Mavericks starting lineup. That should be pretty telling.
The part of this that makes one feel bad for Klay is that playing with Luka Doncic had to be a massive factor as to why Dallas looked so attractive as a free agent destination for him. Thompson's father told ESPN that much after the trade to ship Doncic out of town went down.
Now, Klay is stuck on a team who is performing as poorly offensively as one could imagine. They are not just bad, they are historically bad so far in the 2025-26 NBA season.
The Mavs currently have the worst relative offensive rating in NBA history, according to @bball_ref. pic.twitter.com/FMt2cDE4Jh
— Bobby Karalla (@bobbykaralla) November 6, 2025
Thompson's scoring contributions have been lackluster as a result. The Mavericks marksman has struggled mightily, averaging 8.5 points per game, shooting 34.2 percent from the field and 29.2 percent from beyond the arc.
When that is coupled with his defensive ability, which had already been fading in his days with the Warriors, Klay starts to look a whole lot less playable than he's been in a very long time. The start to the 2025-26 season has the makings of a true fall from grace for the legendary shooter.
There is no guarantee things would have played out exactly like this with the Lakers for Thompson. However, those in Los Angeles may be thankful they do not have to find out how much truth there is to that in real time.