Klay Thompson's Agent Calls Him the Best Two-Way Shooting Guard in the NBA
If the Golden State Warriors hadn't been working on a contract extension with fourth-year guard Klay Thompson before, the negotiating sessions may now be officially underway.
Thompson's agent, Bill Duffy, started publicly posturing on his client's behalf and singing Thompson's praises as loudly as he realistically could.
As Duffy told Sam Amick of USA Today, he thinks his client is the NBA's premier two-way shooting guard:
"I don't want (Los Angeles Lakers star) Kobe Bryant to go crazy, but there's some uncertainty as to who he is right now (because of injuries that limited him to six games last season). But I think Klay Thompson right now is the top two-way, two-guard in basketball. I think when you look at his body of work, when you look at what he accomplished guarding point guards on a regular basis (last season), I think it's pretty clear.
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From a business standpoint, Duffy couldn't have played this any better. He had plenty of reasons to frame this discussion around a 36-year-old Kobe Bryant, who made all of six appearances during the entire 2013-14 season.
"As Duffy knows, comparing his client to Kobe is a better gambit than comparing him to [Dwyane] Wade," wrote NBC Sports' Dan Feldman. "One, Thompson is more likely to compare favorably to Kobe than to Wade at the end of the season. Two, comparing Thompson to Kobe is more likely to drum up discussion."
The more public attention Thompson receives, the more likely it seems he will receive the max offer Duffy has been eyeing for some time.
The Warriors seem destined to meet that request, whether they pony up the cash now or wait for him to hit restricted free agency next summer. According to Marc Stein of ESPN.com, they valued him highly enough to hold him out of a potential trade for perennial All-Star Kevin Love, and Thompson's stock has only increased since after his strong play with Team USA at the FIBA World Cup.
On the basketball side, Duffy's words have plenty of substance.
Thompson is coming off a career year in which he set personal bests in points (18.4), field-goal percentage (44.4) and three-point percentage (41.7). His ability to take on the toughest defensive backcourt assignment on a nightly basis helped the Dubs to a third-place finish in defensive efficiency (99.9 points allowed per 100 possessions).
His stock is soaring, while the position's appears headed in the opposite direction. Established stars like Kobe, Wade, Manu Ginobili and Joe Johnson are fighting with Father Time. Up-and-comers like Bradley Beal, Dion Waiters and Lance Stephenson don't have Thompson's track record.
Thompson's biggest in-their-prime threats all have their weaknesses.
James Harden was removed from the discussion as soon as Duffy put the focus on "two-way" players. That distinction didn't help Monta Ellis, either. DeMar DeRozan, an All-Star last season, plays both ends of the floor, but his shooting limitations (.429/.305/.824 slash) impact his offensive impact.
If Thompson isn't the top two-way player at his position, he's certainly part of the discussion. And he's going to be paid as such soon, money he'd like to see coming from his current club.
"I love the Bay Area," Thompson told Amick. "I love the Warriors, the fans. I just love our team."
The Warriors, by all accounts, love him, too. They love how his three-point rifle can stretch a defense thin. They love his ability to maximize Stephen Curry's offensive impact by lightening the All-Star point guard's defensive load.
It's hard to see Golden State letting Thompson go, but the franchise is going to have pay to keep him around.
Thompson's play demanded such a commitment, and Duffy's words were simply a reminder of that fact.
Unless otherwise noted, statistics used courtesy of Basketball-Reference.com and NBA.com.
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