The Cleveland Cavaliers offered All-Star point guard Kyrie Irving to the Golden State Warriors before trading him to the Boston Celtics, Marc J. Spears of The Undefeated revealed. According to Spears, the Cavaliers attempted to swap Irving with shooting guard Klay Thompson. However, the Warriors said they weren’t interested in Irving. The Cavaliers eventually shipped Irving to the Boston Celtics for Isaiah Thomas, Jae Crowder, Ante Zizic, and the Brooklyn Nets' unprotected 2018 first-round draft pick.
Last season, the 27-year-old Thompson averaged 22.3 points and made 41.4 percent of his attempts from beyond the arc while playing together with Stephen Curry, Kevin Durant and Draymond Green.
However, Thompson’s production in the postseason dipped. In 17 playoff games, he averaged just 15.0 points per game and made 39.7 percent of his attempts from the floor. Despite Thompson’s drop in scoring, the Warriors still showed their superiority over the Cavaliers, beating LeBron James, Irving and company in the NBA Finals in four games as they finished the postseason with a 16-1 mark.
Pacers targeted Thompson for Paul George
This was not the first time that Thompson’s name was involved in trade talks. The Indiana Pacers reportedly approached the Warriors about swapping Paul George with Thompson, but Golden State declined. In an interview after he was traded to the Oklahoma City Thunder for Victor Oladipo and Domantas Sabonis, George said a trade to the Warriors would put him in a good situation and give him a chance to compete for the title.
Thompson can ask for max deal from Warriors
Thompson can demand a maximum deal from the Warriors when he hits free agency after the 2018-19 season, the last year of the four-year, $70 million deal that he signed with the Warriors in 2014. The Warriors recently signed Curry to a maximum five-year deal worth $201 million while Durant inked a two-year contract worth $53 million.
The Warriors did not encounter any cap space problem after Durant accepted a contract $9 million less than what he can actually demand. However, Zach Lowe of ESPN said the Warriors will come to a point where they will not keep all of their superstars. When that time comes, Lowe said Thompson would seem like the likeliest candidate to be traded or released. Also, Thompson also wants to become the face of the franchise, which will not happen in Golden State as he is overshadowed by Curry and Durant.
