Klay Thompson is moving on from the Golden State Warriors, with the four-time league champion agreeing to join the Western Conference champion Dallas Mavericks and change franchises for the first time in his 13-year NBA career, two people with knowledge of the decision said Monday.
ESPN and The Athletic first reported the deal which, as currently constructed, will be executed as the sign-and-trade of a three-year, $50 million US contract involving the Warriors, Mavericks and Charlotte Hornets, said the people, who spoke to The Associated Press on condition of anonymity because the agreement has not been publicly announced. One of the people who spoke to the AP said final trade terms were still being worked out.
Thompson is sixth on the NBA’s all-time 3-pointers made list with 2,481, behind Reggie Miller (2,560), Damian Lillard (2,607), James Harden (2,940), Ray Allen (2,973) and Thompson’s now-former “Splash Brother” with the Warriors, Stephen Curry, and his 3,747 career makes from beyond the arc.
There were indications last season that Thompson and the Warriors might be headed toward a breakup.
Thompson came off the bench 14 times — not much in the grand scheme of things considering he played 77 games, but those were his first appearances as a reserve since his rookie season of 2011-12. He shot 38.7% from 3-point range, the second-worst of his career.
He averaged 17.9 points, the third-lowest of his career. He wasn’t always in the finishing lineup and the season — and his Warriors career — ended with a 0-for-10 shooting performance against Sacramento in a play-in tournament loss.
Thompson — a five-time All-Star and two-time All-NBA selection who missed two entire seasons with injuries — took a long look around the court after that game, soaking in the scene just in case it would be his final time playing with the Warriors.
Turns out, it was. And now he’ll join a Dallas team that just went to the NBA Finals as a shooter brought in to help Luka Doncic and Kyrie Irving.
Maxey, Harris, Hartenstein land deals
They were all undervalued on some level when they entered the NBA. None was a lottery pick, some weren’t even first-round picks and they didn’t have the label of can’t-miss prospects.
That was then. Monday was a very different story for Tyrese Maxey, Derrick White, Isaiah Hartenstein, Tobias Harris, Isaiah Joe and Aaron Wiggins — who are about to sign deals worth a combined $565 million.
All were confirmed to the AP by people with knowledge of the negotiations for the players involved.
Maxey, an All-Star this past season, agreed in principle to a five-year, $204 million extension that keeps him with the Philadelphia 76ers and set to play alongside Joel Embiid and soon-to-be-signed Paul George.
The 76ers, like the rest of the league, are chasing the Boston Celtics, who made a big move by agreeing with guard Derrick White on a four-year extension worth around $125 million. White averaged 15.2 points and 5.2 assists for the NBA champions this past season.
Hartenstein, a centre coming off a breakout year, is leaving New York for Oklahoma City on an $87 million, three-year deal that includes an option. The Thunder — the No. 1 seed in the Western Conference this past season — also finalized extensions with Joe ($48 million) and Wiggins ($47 million).
And Harris is going to Detroit on a two-year deal worth $52 million, a move first reported by ESPN and one that will give the young Pistons an experienced veteran in the room as they continue their rebuild under newly hired coach J.B. Bickerstaff.
Tatum agrees supermax extension
Jayson Tatum is the newest member of the NBA’s $300 million club.
The Boston Celtics star has agreed to a five-year, $314 million contract extension to remain with the reigning NBA champions, a person with knowledge of the situation told The Associated Press on Monday.
The new pact will begin with the 2025-26 season and keep the five-time All-Star in Boston through 2029-30 season, according to the person who spoke on the condition of anonymity because it has not been announced.
The Athletic and ESPN were first to report the deal.
When completed Tatum’s new, supermax contract will become the largest in NBA history, supplanting the one signed last off-season by teammate Jaylen Brown, when he inked a five-year deal that will pay him up to $304 million.
Tatum averaged 26.9 points, 8.1 rebounds, 4.9 assists and shot 47% from the field in earning All-NBA first-team honours for the third consecutive season. Those numbers grew to 25 points, 9.7 rebounds and 6.3 assists per game during a playoff run in which he eclipsed 30 points six times, including 31 in their championship-clinching Game 5 win over the Dallas Mavericks.
He will look to add to his hardware this summer as a member of the U.S. men’s basketball team when it attempts to capture its fifth consecutive gold medal. Tatum previously won a gold medal at the Tokyo Olympics in 2020.
News of Tatum’s deal came on the same day that fellow Celtics starter Derrick White reportedly agreed to a four-year, $126 million extension. All five of Boston’s starters —- Tatum, Brown, White, Jrue Holiday and Kristaps Porzingis —- were already under contract for next season. With Tatum and White’s new agreements they now all could be together through at least the 2025-26 season.
The deal also came on the heels of the Celtics ownership group, led by Wyc Grousbeck, announcing its plans to sell all of its shares by 2028.
Barring any significant roster changes, Boston is expected to have a combined payroll and luxury tax that will exceed $400 million when Tatum’s contract takes effect.
