Mike Dunleavy Jr. on Klay Thompson: ‘We want him back’

While the future is in doubt, the intention is not.

Signs have, unfortunately, been increasingly pointing towards the reality that so many of us feared: every day it seems a little bit more likely that Klay Thompson has played his last game with the Golden State Warriors. But there still remains a good chance that Thompson continues his Hall of Fame career with the only team he’s ever played for ... in fact, the Warriors should still be considered the clear favorites to sign him, even though they reportedly haven’t made him a formal offer yet.

And on Monday, general manager Mike Dunleavy Jr. re-affirmed the organization’s desire to do exactly that. While speaking to reporters at a pre-draft media availability, Dunleavy — who is starting his second year as the GM — refused to offer details on how negotiations have gone with Thompson, but he did make it crystal clear that they want him back.

“We want him back,” Dunleavy said. “We’ve said that all along. Hopefully he comes back.”

There’s always a chance that quotes such as that are simply lip service, but that seems unlikely. Dunleavy even brought up Thompson unprompted; during a response to a question about making a trade to maximize the championship window, Dunleavy responded by saying, “Some patience needs to take place while at the same time recognizing sort of this time horizon we have with Steph and Draymond and hopefully Klay. As those guys kind of get a little bit older, we have to be mindful at a point they are not at a level to compete for a championship. I don’t think that’s, like, too near, but at some point it probably will be.”

Dunleavy was asked multiple questions about Thompson’s negotiations, but repeatedly used the word “private” while abstaining from mentioning details, which is no surprise. And given the reports out of the team’s camp in the last few weeks, it certainly seems that Dunleavy is being honest in his desire to re-sign Thompson.

The question, though, is how badly does the team want Thompson back? That will determine not just what they’re willing to offer him, but when they’re willing to offer it to him. It could be that they want to explore other options and/or see if they can shed salary before they’re willing to give Thompson a competitive offer.

And so the uncomfortable waiting game continues.