Why Draymond Green didn’t convince Klay Thompson to stay with the Warriors – NBC Sports Bay Area & California

Draymond Green was sad to see Klay Thompson leave the Warriors for the Dallas Mavericks, but he didn’t try to change his teammate’s mind.

Instead, Green was nothing but supportive of his longtime Golden State teammate when he recently called to announce his big decision.

Green explained why he didn’t try to convince Thompson to stay with Golden State on the latest episode of “The Draymond Green Show.”

“When he called me, I didn’t even want to try to talk him out of leaving, or say, ‘Hey, you should stay,’ because all the reasons you would give are well-documented, well-known,” Green said. “When he said, ‘Yeah, I’m going to leave,’ I just said, ‘Man, I’m happy for you.’ Not once did I say, ‘Maybe you should reconsider, you have time to reconsider.’”

“Because seeing him struggle the way he did the last year — if you ever care about someone’s well-being… go through it with someone… — I hope that the care you give to that person goes way beyond what you think is best for you or what you want to see. I couldn’t walk away and say, ‘I want to stay,’ or ‘You should stay for this reason.’”

Injuries, poor shooting, roster changes and the general wear and tear of being a 13-year veteran took a toll on Thompson during the 2023-24 NBA season, and Green knew it.

Plus, as Green mentioned, there was nothing left to tell Thompson about the Warriors. He knew everything there was to know and just wanted a fresh start.

Unfortunately for the Warriors, Thompson’s career with Golden State is over. But that doesn’t mean the 34-year-old’s relationship with the organization has to be permanently damaged.

In fact, Green hopes the two parties can have healthy long-term dynamics.

“All great things come to an end,” Green said. “Ultimately, I hope the organization — and I know they do — appreciates Klay and everything he’s done, and I hope Klay appreciates the organization for everything this organization has done for us.”

“We had the best organization in the NBA supporting us and giving us the opportunities (and) things we needed to improve… I hope he appreciates the organization and the organization appreciates him.”

Thompson will forever be a Warriors and Bay Area legend. But for now, he’s a Maverick.

While it will take some time to adjust, Green knows Thompson is happy to have a clean slate in a new organization.

And the “Splash Brother” deserves at least that.

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