Warriors Rumors: Klay Thompson Not Expecting ‘Massive’ Contract in NBA Free Agency

Klay Thompson wants a new contract with the Golden State Warriors but is reportedly not expecting a “massive” deal.

“From my understanding, at least when it comes to Klay’s contract, the conversations that I’ve had, he isn’t under this impression that he is going to get this massive contract,” ESPN’s Kendra Andrews said on the Hoop Collective (46:55 mark). “Steve [Kerr] is on for two more years, matching up with Steph [Curry’s] contract, with two more years. Klay would be content matching up with those guys. Let’s finish this out. He understands where he’s at in his career, what he’s capable of, what he deserves. The other important thing is he wants to feel appreciated by this organization. He wants them to come to him and say, ‘We’re going to take care of you.’

“That’s what they did with Draymond [Green] when they were negotiating his contract. ‘Listen, we haven’t figured it out yet, but we are going to. You are taken care of.’ That hasn’t fully, at least from the last time I have checked, hasn’t been fully expressed to Klay. But once that is presented and communicated of, ‘We want you here, we are going to take care of you. It’s going to look a little bit of different than it has your first, you know, however many years with this organization. But you are that important to us that you always have a home here.’ … When it’s from other people around the organization who are making a lot of these financial decisions, it’s more than like, that’s what he needs to feel.”

Shams Charania of The Athletic and Stadium reported the Warriors offered Thompson a two-year, $48 million extension last summer. Thompson declined that offer.

Given his struggles throughout the 2023-24 season, it seems unlikely Thompson will be able to top—or potentially even match—that offer. Thompson is averaging 17.4 points, 3.3 rebounds and 2.3 assists per game this season while shooting a career-low 38.4 percent from three-point range. It’s just the second time in his career he’s dipped below the 40 percent mark.

It’s largely been a season of reckoning for Thompson, whose Hall of Fame career was derailed by injuries. He returned to action from a 30-month absence in 2021 but has never been able to consistently perform at the same level he did prior to tearing his ACL in 2019 and Achilles in 2020.

“I’ll be 35 next year. At 35, coming off the ACL and an Achilles [tear] and still have the ability to be a really good player. Maybe not the guy who scored 60 in three quarters and scored an NBA record 37 points in a quarter, but still a great threat out there,” Thompson said in February. “I’ve modeled my game after Reggie [Miller] and Ray [Allen], and those guys were incredibly effective until their late 30s. So I plan on kind of following that mold.

“I’ve kind of had a revelation over the past few days that despite the shooting numbers or the inconsistent play, I deserve to have fun, and I deserve to play with swagger.”

Thompson said he would be open to a reduced role to stay in Golden State, and he’s come off the bench 14 games this season. That role change marked the first time he’s come off the bench since his rookie campaign.