SAN FRANCISCO — Much of Klay Thompson’s last four years were defined by his two career-altering injuries and the mental toll it took as he got too close to a reality without basketball. During the title run, he celebrated moments where he looked like his old self.
Now that honeymoon phase is over and the dynasty’s future will depend on Thompson evolving his game from catch-and-shoot lightning rod to an all-around approach to utilize his size and athleticism for more than just scoring.
Head coach Steve Kerr didn’t mince words about his expectations for Thompson as he heads into the final year of his five-year, $184 million contract where he will earn $43 million — second to just Steph Curry among Warriors’ salaries. Thompson cannot use his minutes in desperate search of his old self anymore; on two older, surgically repaired legs, the Warriors need him to explore the new responsibilities involved in being a high-paid veteran player.
“The biggest thing for Klay is to have a great offseason,” Kerr said last week. “At 33, with two major injuries behind him, this is a time where he’s got to be more prepared than ever for the first day of training camp, not only physically handling the injuries and the strength and conditioning part of everything, but also understanding that as you get older you’ve got to get better and areas you can improve upon. You can’t rely on the same things you could rely on at 28 or 27.”
Most in the organization pinned a disjointed regular season on the ripple effect of Draymond Green’s punch of Jordan Poole. But one could also point to the bad start on Thompson arriving at training camp out of shape, having not participated in enough offseason workouts. His poor start to the season coincided with the Warriors’ poor start — all of it set a tone. Thompson’s admission that fear of re-injuring himself kept him from playing pick-up ball. At the time, that was understandable.
But what of the indication that Thompson needs to evolve his overall game beyond strength and conditioning? Thompson had a standout year, statistically: His 301 made 3-pointers led the entire league and he shot 41.2% from 3 on an average of 10.6 attempts per game (fourth-most in the league; Curry was first) and averaged 22 points per game. His scoring was key to keeping the team afloat during Curry’s two extended absences due to injury.
Problems with Thompson’s game cropped up early on, as he was desperately trying to find success in his old ways — shooting off screens and not looking to make the extra pass. It got to a point where Draymond Green had to have a wake-up-call discussion with his longtime teammate. At the All-Star break, with Curry out the first few weeks due to injury, assistant coach Bruce Fraser urged Thompson to work on his rebounding and playmaking.
Thompson made an effort to rebound and make the extra pass instead of searching for windows to take a 3, particularly in that second half. He had a pair of career-high 11-rebound games as well as a pair of five-assist games in March and, at times, checked himself while hunting for 3s.
But he reverted to his worst habits when it mattered most, including throughout the Warriors’ second-round loss to the Lakers when he shot 28% from 3 over the final four games of the series. At times, it looked like the Lakers were inviting Thompson to indulge his bad habits, and it ended with a 2-for-12 shooting night from 3 in the Game 6 elimination.
“Tonight I got so many great looks,” he said after the game. “That’s why it hurts.”
He also took two ill-advised 3-pointers to sink a winnable Game 4 in L.A.
“That one with five seconds on the shot clock, wish I could have that back, gotten a better look,” Thompson said after that game. “That one on the left wing I feel like I rushed it…I shoulda taken my time.”
Thompson’s brilliance stems from his audacity; the same head-scratching 3s he missed in these playoffs are the ones he made that turned him into a hero in past postseasons. Confidence like that is hard to come by in an individual player, so coaches can’t condemn chutzpah.
If the Big Three of Curry, Green and Thompson want to stay together to compete for a fifth title, individual evolution on their part to keep from staying stagnant is crucial. Curry has constantly evolved as a scorer and defender. The Warriors could benefit from Green evolving into more of a scoring threat.
That might mean using Thompson’s 6-foot-7 frame to get to the rim more and draw a few fouls — he averaged fewer than two free throws per game this year — and keeping up his aggression on the boards. Denver’s Michael Porter Jr. is a good model of a player who shoots off screens like Thompson, but uses his large frame to get physical at the rim and on the glass.
Doing this could help determine Thompson’s future with the franchise with which he will be forever tied. He’s extension eligible on the final year of his max contract and there’s talk that he would have to accept a pay cut on his next deal, given the limitations to his game that have been revealed. There’s a world where the Warriors explore trading Thompson to free up the 32.25% of cap space he takes up on the roster. But it’s unlikely they find a trade partner willing to give a decent haul in return to take on that money.
Thompson signed that max contract as he was rehabbing a torn ACL and Achilles. The Warriors offered it based on the player he was before the devastation. An extension, and another title, will hinge on whether Thompson can discover the best version of himself after it.
