There's no need for Warriors fans to hit the panic button just yet regarding Klay Thompson's contract negotiations.
At least according to ESPN's Brian Windhorst, who downplayed the concern about the longtime guard's future with the team as he approaches unrestricted free agency in an appearance on the "Pat McAfee Show" Wednesday.
Windhorst explained what Thompson might be worth at this point in his career and what the five-time NBA All-Star might be prioritizing with his next contract.
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"They tried to get something done before last season, they couldn't agree and then Klay went out and didn't have a very good year," Windhorst said. "He had a good year by your average NBA player standard, he averaged 18 points and shot 39 percent on 3s. That type of production would probably get you $20-to-25 million.
"Klay was making over $40 million last year, so they want him to come down and wherever that number is they want him to come to -- and the years, it's not just the amount of money per year, it's also the number of years -- he saw Draymond [Green] and Andrew Wiggins get four. I don't know exactly where these negotiations are, but if I were him I would ask for four too ... I find it hard to believe that Klay would walk and go to a place like the Orlando Magic. But I guess it's possible."
Thompson recently unfollowed the Warriors on social media and removed many of his posts related to the team, which sent Golden State and NBA fans into a frenzy speculating about his potential departure from the organization.
While the tactic is not uncommon in today's professional sports environment and oftentimes is used as leverage in negotiations, Windhorst didn't rule out the possibility that the 2023-24 NBA season might have left a sour taste in Thompson's mouth.
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"Let's not get ahead of ourselves, this could still end up being a happy story," Windhorst added. "But I would say, remember last year, Klay was getting benched at the end of games. He lost his starting job at some point. So part of this may be, and again I do not know exactly the status of negotiations, but part of this may be what's the role going to be? I want to get starter money and I want to be a starter. Something like that.
"It's definitely a signal to the rest of the world he knew exactly what he was doing that things are not going well and if I was interested in signing Klay, which there are definitely teams that want to do that, I would have seen that as a green light. When June 30 gets here, that is when you're allowed to start talking to him, they can still come to terms between now and June 30 ..."
This also isn't the first time a Warriors star player has gone out and thoroughly tested free agency. Windhorst recalled former forward Andre Iguodala's second free-agency tour during the summer of 2021 and how there initially was a similar cause for concern among Warriors fans before Iguodala eventually re-signed with Golden State.
"I will say a few years ago this happened with Andre Iguodala," Windhorst recalled. "They won a couple of championships with Iguodala and he was a free agent and he wanted to get taken care of and basically, he wanted to be overpaid. And he took like a free-agent tour and I remember Steve Kerr telling the story that when the Warriors actually went in to meet with him in his board room that Iguodala had left like knick-knacks and pamphlets and brochures from other teams, like 'just so you know this isn't my first meeting.'
"Iguodala did that and acted like he was going to go to the Rockets who were their arch nemesis at the time and at the end of the day he got re-signed. And he was sort of at the same stage of his career as Klay is. I agree it doesn't look good but I would also say don't misjudge a negotiation as a statement of finality."
Will Thompson follow in Iguodala's footsteps and finish his NBA career with the Warriors? We should find out soon with the free-agent negotiating window set to begin on June 30.
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