The Golden State Warriors are ready to keep laughing in the faces of the luxury tax gods.
NBA insider Chris Mannix of Sports Illustrated reported this week on where the Warriors stand on extension talks with star sniper Klay Thompson, who is entering the final year of his contract. Mannix notes that Thompson wants to stay and that the Warriors also want to keep him. NBA executives thus believe that a four-year extension in the range of $30-$35 million a year would be a “reasonable” expectation for Thompson, adds Mannix.
“There is no sign of acrimony between Thompson and the Warriors,” Mannix writes. “Bet on the two sides getting something done.”
You can read Mannix’s full report on the Thompson-Warriors situation here.
This report comes after Thompson spoke out this week about his contract status in an interview with The Athletic and said that he doesn’t want to be anywhere else.
An extended interview with Klay Thompson on his contract status, long-term future with the Warriors, the sting of that Lakers playoff loss and more.
“It’d be so hard to envision myself in another uniform.”https://t.co/YqFmEBB2rM
— Anthony Slater (@anthonyVslater) October 11, 2023
Thompson is set to make $43.2 million in the final year of his deal this season. While an average annual tab of $30-$35 million would thus mean a pay cut for him, that is still a sizable amount of money to commit to a player who turns 34 this season and has multiple major lower-body injuries in his recent past. A new four-year contract for Thompson would run through his 38th birthday, and at that price tag, would put him around the range of what fellow shooting guards like 27-year-old Donovan Mitchell and 22-year-old Anthony Edwards are making (and above the range of what 24-year-old Jordan Poole and 23-year-old Tyler Herro are making).
Don’t get it wrong, Thompson is still a very productive player (21.9 points per game on 41.2 percent from three last season) who is an irreplaceable component of the Dubs’ identity, especially having helped them win four titles in the last decade. But with all of the money that the way capped-out Warriors have already thrown around, they may have to do a delicate tango here to make sure that a Thompson extension makes sense for both sides.
