Current:Home > ScamsGoodbye Warriors, thanks for the memories. Klay Thompson's departure spells dynasty's end -TradeWisdom
Goodbye Warriors, thanks for the memories. Klay Thompson's departure spells dynasty's end
View
Date:2025-04-20 19:50:16
The Golden State Warriors with Steph Curry, Klay Thompson and Draymond Green were a treat, providing entertainment, drama and a dynasty that changed the way basketball is played and viewed.
Those days are over. And perhaps they were unofficially over a year ago when the Warriors lost in the Western Conference semifinals.
The triumvirate that spearheaded four titles in eight seasons, including three in four seasons, has splintered with Thompson agreeing to a deal with the Dallas Mavericks on Monday.
In Thompson’s last game with the Warriors, he had zero points on 0-for-10 shooting from the field and 0-for-6 on 3-pointers. The end had arrived for both sides.
This move is very much about the Mavericks trying to improve their roster after losing to the Boston Celtics 4-1 in the NBA Finals.
But it’s also very much about the Warriors – what they were and what they no longer are.
ANALYSIS:2024 NBA power rankings: How every team stacks up after draft
ANALYSIS:2024 NBA draft grades for all 30 teams: Who hit the jackpot?
In today’s NBA, it’s increasingly difficult for a star to remain with the same team for his entire career. As teams shift strategies (financial, rebuilding, reshaping), star players either don’t want to be part of those plans or are excluded from them. Teams and players move on.
Maybe Curry finishes his career with Golden State. But no one will be surprised if he doesn’t. The Warriors need to figure out their future. They didn’t make the playoffs in 2023-24, and they are not among the top teams headed into 2024-25.
Thompson and Curry were major players in the Great 3-point Revolution. Each player shooting upwards of 10 3s per game was normal, and the Warriors crushed teams with their ability to spread the floor, tax the defense and make 3s. When they were on, there were no defensive answers.
Thompson is No. 6 on the all-time 3-pointers made list and will pass Reggie Miller for fifth in 2024-25. No teammates shot the ball like Curry, No. 1 all-time in 3s made, and Thompson. The Warriors’ offense at times was impossible to defend as Golden State won championships in 2015, 2017, 2018 and 2022. That last title was a send-off. The West was getting deeper, the Warriors older and nothing lasts forever.
In the 2022 Final between Boston and Golden State, Celtics president of basketball operations Brad Stevens and then-assistant coach Joe Mazzulla watched that shooting upend Boston.
OPINION:Yes, Bronny James is benefiting from nepotism. So what?
Which leads to the present. Not every team has a Curry or Thompson, but making 3s is necessary to win. Boston attempted and made more 3s than any team in the league in 2023-24, and Dallas’ lack of shooting was exposed in the Finals.
The Celtics, now coached by Mazzulla, crushed the Mavs on 3-pointers in the Final, outscoring Dallas 210-144 from that distance in a five-game series.
The Mavericks need better shooters, and Thompson, 34 years old and a future Hall of Famer, can provide that. He’s not the All-NBA or All-Defense Klay Thompson – or even an All-Star – but alongside Kyrie Irving and Luka Doncic, he helps the Mavs.
Enough to get back to the Finals? That’s difficult. The 2018 and 2019 Warriors are the last team to appear in consecutive Finals, and the West is stacked with quality teams.
Thompson in a Mavs jersey will take a moment to get used to no matter how anticipated his departure from Golden State was.
Follow NBA reporter Jeff Zillgitt on social media @JeffZillgitt
veryGood! (51)
Related
- Nearly 400 USAID contract employees laid off in wake of Trump's 'stop work' order
- Reba McEntire gets emotional on 'The Voice' with Super Save singer Ms. Monét: 'I just love ya'
- Tribal police officer arrested in connection to a hit-and-run accident in Arizona
- Dutch election winner Wilders taps former center-left minister to look at possible coalitions
- Woman dies after Singapore family of 3 gets into accident in Taiwan
- Abigail Mor Edan, the 4-year-old American held hostage by Hamas, is now free. Here's what to know.
- 2 men, 1 woman dead after shooting at NJ residence, authorities say
- Latvia’s chief diplomat pursues NATO’s top job, saying a clear vision on Russia is needed
- Which apps offer encrypted messaging? How to switch and what to know after feds’ warning
- American consumers more confident in November as holiday shopping season kicks into high gear
Ranking
- Backstage at New York's Jingle Ball with Jimmy Fallon, 'Queer Eye' and Meghan Trainor
- The family of an infant hostage pleads for his release as Israel-Hamas truce winds down
- Michigan police chase 12-year-old boy operating stolen forklift
- The tragic cost of e-waste and new efforts to recycle
- The White House is cracking down on overdraft fees
- Sydney Sweeney Looks Unrecognizable After Brunette Hair Transformation for New Role
- 'I'm home': CM Punk addresses WWE universe on 'Raw' in first appearance in nearly 10 years
- How much should you tip? How about nothing? Tipping culture is out of control.
Recommendation
All That You Wanted to Know About She’s All That
Jill Biden unveils White House holiday decorations: 98 Christmas trees, 34K ornaments
'Family Switch' 2023 film: Cast, trailer and where to watch
'Family Switch' 2023 film: Cast, trailer and where to watch
Charges tied to China weigh on GM in Q4, but profit and revenue top expectations
Motown bound! Patrick Kane signs one-year deal with Red Wings
Belarus raids apartments of opposition activists as part of sweeping probe called latest crackdown
Security guard fatally shot at New Hampshire hospital remembered for dedication to community, family