It’s official. Klay Thompson will be joining the Dallas Mavericks. This is after the former Golden State Warriors star shooting guard agreed to a $50 million deal with the Mavs for the next three years.
Thompson’s decision comes in the wake of serious interest from the Los Angeles Lakers, which reportedly also involved LeBron James personally attempting to recruit Klay to Hollywood. Apparently, not even a direct phone call from LeBron himself was enough to convince Thompson to take his talents to LA.
Dallas Mavericks News: Klay Thompson Agrees to Three-Year Deal
The Mavs have ended the Thompson sweepstakes by successfully negotiating a three-year deal with the four-time NBA champ. According to ESPN’s NBA guru Adrian Wojnarowski, Thompson believes that it would be in Dallas where he would get the best chance to win another title:
“Free agent guard Klay Thompson has agreed on a three-year, $50 million contract with the Dallas Mavericks, ending his historic 13-year run with the four-time champion Golden State Warriors, sources told ESPN on Monday.
“Thompson’s deal was largely inspired by the chance to compete for a fifth title with the Western Conference champion Mavericks,” Woj reported.
That’s roughly $16.7 million per year for Thompson, which is not bad at all, all things considered.
Klay Thompson Shunned Lakers
Woj went on to report that there are at least two compelling reasons as to why Thompson turned down the opportunity to link up with LeBron and sign with his hometown team. Apparently, Thompson, an LA native, considered the cost of living in Dallas, as well as the Mavs’ recent NBA Finals run as the two main factors in his decision:
“The Lakers were extremely intriguing to Thompson, but the financial savings from living in Texas over California and the fact that the Mavericks came within three victories of an NBA championship were big factors in his decision, sources said,” Woj wrote.
This is obviously a tough blow for the Lakers, who have now struck out with three of their main LeBron-motivated free agency candidates after James Harden and Jonas Valanciunas also signed new deals with the Los Angeles Clippers and the Washington Wizards, respectively.
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