Draymond Green 'Happy' Klay Thompson Joined Mavs After Difficult Season with Warriors

Golden State Warriors star Draymond Green admitted he's "happy" that Klay Thompson found a better situation for himself with the Dallas Mavericks this offseason.

Green addressed Thompson's exit on the Club 520 Podcast and contended it was mutually beneficial. He said at the 34:26 mark that Thompson "relieved this organization of the financial hardships that the organization was starting to face" while landing in what should be a more fulfilling role in Dallas.

"He provided cap relief for this organization on his way out," Green said. "Got some picks sent back to the organization on his way out. And I believe in second-round picks. I got no choice but to believe in second-round picks. So I'm happy for him. I'm happy he left, because I did not enjoy at all seeing him the way I saw him last year."

You didn't have to be inside Golden State's locker room to see Thompson was having a tough time in 2023-24. He briefly came off the bench for the first time since his rookie season, and head coach Steve Kerr experimented by closing games without the 34-year-old sharpshooter.

Behind the scenes, negotiations over an extension only exacerbated the situation. The Warriors had to be pragmatic with Thompson given his age and declining skills, and that risked alienating a franchise legend.

ESPN's Ramona Shelburne and Kendra Andrews cited a source who described him as "miserable" this past year: "Miserable with how negotiations with the team had gone on a new contract Miserable at the thought he wasn't respected or valued by the franchise in the way his older Splash Brother, Stephen Curry, 36, and Draymond Green, 34, were. Miserable at his declining role on the team. And yes, miserable at the way his game and play had declined, as well."

This became a clear case of irreconcilable differences. Even if Thompson had re-signed with the Warriors, it may have only prolonged an inevitable divorce.

For a lot of Warriors fans, Thompson's departure won't feel real until he's not there on the court for opening night. Curry himself admitted that "it's still weird."

"I really haven't figured out the emotions yet just because it's one of those pieces that really won't sink in until you get into October and you go to the locker room and you're in your familiar sights and sounds of the Chase Center," he told Andscape's Marc J. Spears.

As painful as it was to watch Thompson go, everybody should be better off for it.