NBA Rumors: Klay Thompson to Join Mavs on $50M Contract in Warriors Sign-and-Trade

Klay Thompson plans to join the Dallas Mavericks on a three-year, $50 million contract as part of a sign-and-trade involving the Golden State Warriors and Charlotte Hornets, according to Adrian Wojnarowski of ESPN.

According to Wojnarowski, the Warriors will receive two second-round picks from the Mavericks to complete the deal:

Thompson spent his first 13 NBA seasons with the Warriors. He signed a five-year, $189.9 million contract with the Warriors in 2019, just weeks after suffering a torn ACL that would cost him the entire 2019-20 season. The five-time All-Star would tear his Achilles the following offseason and miss 2020-21 and much of 2021-22 as a result.

In total, Thompson did not play basketball for 30 months before returning in January 2021. Since his return, Thompson has been in a clearly diminished state—particularly on the defensive end, where he'd previously been one of the most rugged perimeter defenders in basketball.

The Warriors were able to navigate Thompson's streaky shooting to win the 2022 NBA championship, and he has mostly returned to form as a shooter, knocking down 41.2 percent of his threes in 2022-23.

Still, there are now greater limits to Thompson's impact on the floor than the last time he signed a new max deal.

The Warriors entered the offseason having to navigate the realities of the new collective bargaining agreement. Team governor Joe Lacob was open about his desire to duck under the luxury tax given the exorbitant penalties paid by teams in the new CBA—particularly when it comes to roster flexibility.

The Warriors and Thompson made no real progress on contract talks ahead of free agency, with Golden State largely focused on a failed pursuit of Paul George. That allowed Dallas to swoop in and land Thompson.

Trading Thompson—a foundational piece to the franchise—indicates a shift in the franchise's dynamic.

Thompson joins a Mavericks team fresh off an NBA Finals appearance and loaded with two future Hall of Famers in Luka Dončić and Kyrie Irving. Doncic and Irving should be able to supply Thompson with a never-ending supply of open threes on the perimeter, giving the Mavericks arguably the NBA's most dynamic offense.