Warriors fans might be fretting, but Golden State shouldn’t fear Klay Thompson going onto the open market in free agency.
That’s because I don’t expect Thompson to find the kind of big-money, long-term deal he wants from the rest of the league.
There are only five teams with salary cap space of $30 million or more coming into the season — enough space to sign Thompson to that big-money deal he wants: Detroit, Philadelphia, Utah, Oklahoma City, and Orlando.
Are any of those teams going to use that cap space on Thompson?
More importantly, are they keen to spend on him for three or four seasons?
I don’t see it.
Thompson would have zero interest in going to Detroit — no matter the number. I don’t think Detroit would be interested in him, either. The same is probably true in Utah.
Orlando is being held up as a possibility — they need a 3-point shooter. But there’s no evidence of traction there.
It’s also hard to see Oklahoma City seeing Thompson as a game-changing piece for them, particularly after they traded for Alex Caruso. Plus, you know Thompson would be a bench player for the Thunder.
The team that should elicit some concern from Dubs fans is Philadelphia. But Thompson isn’t even close to their first choice in a use-it-or-lose-it offseason. The Sixers have the cap space and the draft picks to go big-game hunting — Thompson is no longer big game.
Outside of that, who is going to move players and money to make room to add Thompson?
And in this new CBA environment, there will simply be fewer participants in free agency — at least when it comes to players on Thompson’s level.
Thompson can land either the term or the money from another team— someone will make an honest offer for him.
But the only place he can reasonably land both is Golden State. I’d be stunned if he doesn’t return.
Another exit
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Steve Kerr is losing another top assistant coach. This time, it’s Kenny Atkinson, who is heading to Cleveland to be that team’s next head coach.
You won’t hear an unkind word about Atkinson from anyone in the NBA. His intellect and passion for the game is elite, and he picked up a raw deal in his last head coaching job in Brooklyn.
But I don’t see …read more
Source:: The Mercury News – Entertainment
