Klay Thompson bristled as the notion that he can’t guard at a high level anymore and is eager to prove skeptics wrong, he told Eddie Sefko of Mavs.com.
“I still want to get rid of that notion that I’m not the same defender I once was,” Thompson said. “I truly believe I am. I’m excited to prove people wrong, that I can still guard the elite players in this league.”
The fact that he has joined a Mavericks team with two stars in Kyrie Irving and Luka Doncic adds to that motivation.
“That’s a big reason why I came here, those two guys,” Thompson said. “(I have) big dreams and aspirations with this team. They were so close last year (reaching the NBA Finals) and I really feel we have everything we need.”
We have more on the Texas teams:
- Reserve guard Jaden Hardy is intent on establishing himself as a rugged defender, he told Grant Afseth of Sportskeeda.com. “Right now, I’m focused on defending the three better, picking up full court, and challenging guys while they bring the ball up,” he said. “I’m also working on being in the right spots on defense, communicating, and bringing energy.” Hardy will be a restricted free agent next summer.
- Spurs big man Zach Collins made his preseason debut on Saturday after recovering from right shoulder surgery. He contributed 11 points in a win over Utah. “Considering (the layoff), I thought he looked really good,” coach Gregg Popovich said, per Jeff McDonald of the San Antonio Express News. “He boarded. He banged with people. He wasn’t afraid of the shoulder or anything like that.”
- In the same preseason game, Keldon Johnson excelled as the Spurs’ sixth man, pouring in 20 points. Johnson shed 10 pounds during the offseason and believes that has made a difference in his performance level, he told McDonald. “I feel fast, I feel strong,” Johnson said. “Best I felt in a long time.”
This is and has been Klay’s issue. You’re not the same player anymore. Adjust and find your role. Dude chucked shots up last year like he is Steph.
Yeah it’s more sad than anything else. It’s one thing to be driven by competitive spirit, it’s another to be delusional to the point of self sabotage. Frankly I think the mental aspects of the game are underexposed and wonder where we’ll be with it 20, 30 years from now. It’s a shame because it’s really interesting.
Often times the players are the last to know…
Klay needs to understand he is a 20 MPG guy from here on out in his career. He thinks he’s still an all-star. Such a bad choice by Dallas to look at him like he was going to be the answer on this Dallas squad that desperately needs defense.
Klay made the right career move…
He has a shot at a title this season… That just wasn’t going to happen in Golden State…
GSW just trying to put pieces together to get to a Play In spot and say they did their best to assemble a championship squad for Steph.
Scarlett , another perspective is that it’s a terrible career move because he will not meet the unrealistic expectations set in Dallas
What happens if Klay plays as badly in Dallas the first 1/3 of the season as he did last season (37% from field, 30% from deep)? Kerr and Dubs fans tolerated that. Jason Kidd and Dallas fans will not.
They’ll have to take a loss to move off his contract. They’ll likely lose valuable assets to move off his negative value contract, likely Hardy , Exum , and possibly a 1st as well. Which they cannot afford while trying to contend.
Hopefully the Mavs are prepared for a rocky start. History tells that Klay almost always struggles in the early season and finishes strong. Last season was especially bad, but the beginnings of the previous two seasons weren’t much better.
The last 3 seasons that Klay has been available at the start of the season were 2018-2019, 2022-23, and, last season, 2023-24. (He missed the beginnings of 2019-21 with injuries.) In all 3 of these seasons, for the months of October and November, he shot under 34% from 3 and under 42% from the field.
History tells that Klay is back in form by January.