Klay Thompson's Emotional Return to Golden State: A Night of Celebration and New Beginnings

It’s Klay Day.

A beloved former Golden State Warrior and all-time shooter will splash down Tuesday in San Francisco to play against the team he helped carve out an era (10 ET, TNT). Officially, Klay Thompson is a member of the Dallas Mavericks now. But you’ll never know from the rousing roar he’ll receive from fans who haven’t forgotten.

Thompson successfully rode shotgun to Stephen Curry for 13 seasons, winning four championships and changing the game together. While Thompson is rightfully linked to Curry for obvious reasons, he stood out on his own — becoming a record-setting shooter with a textbook square-up-and-face-the-basket form.

The night will be remembered for all of that, along with his dry humor, love for his dog and boats and his strong sense of pride and determination. Those last two traits helped propel him from career-threatening knee and Achilles injuries, which sidelined him for 2 1/2 years.

He’s in Dallas because he needed a change of scenery, and perhaps deep down a bit more love than the Warriors were willing to give last summer when he became a free agent.

No matter what happens with the Mavericks, his legacy remains in the Bay.

Thompson and the Mavericks arrived at the Chase Center in San Francisco for their opening game in the NBA Cup on Tuesday, and Thompson quickly received a massive reception from fans both in the arena and from those waiting outside as he arrived.

[The game was dubbed “Salute Captain Klay” night, and fans received a white captain’s hat with a Warriors logo on it in honor of Thompson — who used to take a boat to games when he played for the Warriors. The team played a tribute video ahead of the game, too, and gave Thompson a huge ovation on the court ahead of the game.](https://www.kron4.com/nba/warriors/warriors-to-honor-thompsons-return-by-giving-away-captain-klay-hats/)

Thompson signed a three-year, $50 million deal with the Mavericks this past offseason. That officially ended his incredible run with the Warriors, which produced four championships over an eight-season span. The Warriors first selected Thompson with the No. 11 overall pick in 2011 out of Washington State, and he quickly became both a fan favorite in the Bay Area and a critical part of the Warriors’ dynasty alongside Stephen Curry and Draymond Green as other pieces came and went.

Though he said he still cherishes the run he went on at Golden State to kick off his career in the league, Thompson is simply focused on putting it behind him for now.

“That chapter is over,” Thompson told Andscape’s Marc J. Spears on Sunday. “I’m in the midst of trying to win here. There is no point in missing anything when we have such a great opportunity here to be great. There’s no point in looking back … I got to look forward. I got to try to give my best self here.”

Thompson averaged 17.9 points per game last season at Golden State, which was his worst output in more than a decade. He shot worse than 40% from behind the arc for just the second time in his career, too. Thompson left the Warriors sixth in total points scored in team history, fourth in games played and second to Stephen Curry in made 3-pointers. He also holds the NBA record with 14 made 3-pointers in a single game, which he set with the Warriors in 2018.

The 34-year-old entered Tuesday’s game averaging 13.8 points and 3.7 rebounds with 2.9 made 3-pointers per game so far this season in Dallas. The Mavericks sit at 5-5.

While players don’t always get a warm reception on their first few trips back to their old arenas, Thompson clearly is still in a good place with the Warriors’ fan base.

“I’m looking forward to it,” Warriors coach Steve Kerr said Sunday, via Spears. “I think we all are. It will be very emotional. I know our fans are geared up for it and can’t wait to see Klay.”

Klay Thompson's move to Dallas marks a new chapter, but his legacy in Golden State is forever etched in NBA history.

Expect an emotional night when Klay Thompson and the Mavs visit the Warriors for a key NBA Cup matchup.

It’s Klay Day.

He’s in Dallas because he needed a change of scenery, and perhaps deep down a bit more love than the Warriors were willing to give last summer when he became a free agent.

No matter what happens with the Mavericks, his legacy remains in the Bay.

The game was dubbed “Salute Captain Klay” night, and fans received a white captain’s hat with a Warriors logo on it in honor of Thompson — who used to take a boat to games when he played for the Warriors. The team played a tribute video ahead of the game, too, and gave Thompson a huge ovation on the court ahead of the game.

Though he said he still cherishes the run he went on at Golden State to kick off his career in the league, Thompson is simply focused on putting it behind him for now.

The 34-year-old entered Tuesday’s game averaging 13.8 points and 3.7 rebounds with 2.9 made 3-pointers per game so far this season in Dallas. The Mavericks sit at 5-5.

While players don’t always get a warm reception on their first few trips back to their old arenas, Thompson clearly is still in a good place with the Warriors’ fan base.

Klay Thompson's move to Dallas marks a new chapter, but his legacy in Golden State is forever etched in NBA history.

Expect an emotional night when Klay Thompson and the Mavs visit the Warriors for a key NBA Cup matchup.

Here are 10 unforgettable moments in Thompson’s stay with the Warriors:

From both a critical and cosmetic standpoint, nothing Thompson did with the Warriors can match his Game 6 against Oklahoma City in the Western Conference Finals. It was beautiful to behold and it saved the Warriors’ 73-win season (to that point, anyway).

Here it is: 22 fourth-quarter points, rallying from eight points down, and pushing the Warriors — who fell behind in the series 3-1 — to a seventh game they would eventually win.

Thompson netted an NBA playoff-record 11 3-pointers and finished with 41 points. Epic, historic and forever known as “Game 6 Klay.”

“Steph (Curry) told me before I went out in the fourth, ‘This is your time, put on a show and have fun.’ I took those words to heart, and I just tried to be aggressive.” — Thompson.

There were games in which he scored more points, games that were far more critical and games he finished with a winning basket. Fine. And yet what he did against the New York Knicks may take years to duplicate, if ever.

Klay Thompson dropped 43 PTS tonight. He also only dribbled the ball 4 times.

4 TIMES. 😱#DubNation

It was a catch-and-shoot clinic that exemplified what made Thompson unique and special. He didn’t attempt a free throw — which means it was pure. All night he broke free, waited for the pass, then let it fly. Well, OK — a few times he needed a dribble to set himself up.

And this ranking might be debatable because Thompson also did …

There is only one Klay Thompson.

This 2016 performance is all-time:💧 60 points💧 11 dribbles💧 21-33 FG💧 8-14 3PT💧 29 minutes💧 90 seconds with the ball all game

Take your pick. There’s no wrong answer. To clarify, he got 11 points from the free-throw line in this game, so it’s (technically) 49 points on 11 dribbles. Otherwise, it was a stunning showcase against the Indiana Pacers. And yes, 60 points (in 29 minutes!) is a milestone, a level unreachable by most — and he didn’t play in the fourth quarter.

By the way, the two times Thompson reached his career high in points (he had 52 against the Kings two years earlier), he didn’t play in the fourth quarter because both games were blowouts.

“Who knows? He would’ve kept shooting. Klay’s never going to stop shooting.” — Warriors coach Steve Kerr, on whether Thompson could’ve scored 70 or 80 had he played the fourth quarter.

So, so bittersweet, this one. And it’s because folks remember it for regrettable reasons. Of course, this is the game Thompson injured his knee, costing him the remainder of the NBA Finals against the Toronto Raptors and more importantly, all of next season (which became two missed seasons after his subsequent Achilles injury).

But: What a study of skill, determination and basketball courage. Who could forget Thompson, after his injury and walking off the floor, returning to shoot the required two free throws … then saying he wants to stay in the game! Kerr had to tell him it was over. Thompson (30 points) wanted to save the series, especially after the Warriors already lost Kevin Durant with an Achilles injury. It meant that much to him. And it endeared him forever among Warriors fans.

Emotions were high at Chase Center when Thompson returned after spending 941 days recovering from knee and Achilles injuries. It was his first game in the new building — remember, his knee injury was in the final game in Oakland — and “Headband Klay” was ready for a new beginning.

When he soared for a dunk just minutes into that game against Cleveland, he seemed determined to show just how far removed he was from those injuries. He finished with 17 points, but that wasn’t the point. The “Splash Bros.” were renewed, and while it ultimately wasn’t a carbon copy of the Old Splash, it was good enough to help the Warriors win their fourth title in eight years.

“He’s been talking about how he feels and what’s going to be the last thing to come back, and that was the answer. It was amazing to watch and obviously the building went crazy from start to finish.” — Curry, on Thompson’s dunk.

Back in January of 2015, Klay Thompson scored 37 points in one quarter against Sacramento.

That’s it. That’s the story. Thompson couldn’t miss — literally — in the third quarter. He made all 13 attempts, nine from deep against the Kings (watch all of them here). This was a 52-point masterpiece, but the quarter in and of itself was historically special.

Coincidently, Thompson’s final game with the Warriors also came against the Kings and the night proved the exact opposite — Thompson missed all 10 of his shots in last season’s Play-In Tournament game.

“I was one of the luckiest NBA players ever to play with Michael Jordan, Tim Duncan, David Robinson and some of the greatest players ever. As many spectacular things as Michael did, which he did nightly, I never saw him do that.” — Kerr.

Curry hit 13 shots from deep in 2016 and obviously took pride in setting that single-game NBA record, yet it was also a gauntlet thrown to his teammate, who was the most likely threat to that record.

Sure enough, Thompson had that hot night against the Bulls when he dropped 3 after 3. When he drilled the 14th and record-breaker — in the third quarter, no less — his teammates (Curry included) smothered him. Interestingly, Thompson was just 5-for-36 from deep in the Warriors’ first seven games that season, one of the chillest stretches of his career.

On this day in 2018, Klay Thompson (52 PTS in 3 quarters) set an NBA record for 3-pointers in a game with 14 triples made! #NBAVault #NBA75pic.twitter.com/Ek4bGkHSHC

“He was due for a game like this. He saw one go in, and his eyes got as big as the basketball. It’s tough after that, because they’re looking for him. He’s running off of screens, and you can’t touch him anyway. It’s tough.” — Bulls guard Zach LaVine.

Curry vs. Thompson, Part II. Throughout their time together in the Bay, Thompson and Curry engaged in shooting contests mainly after practice. Then it got “serious” when Curry beat Thompson to win the 3-point contest at the 2015 All-Star Weekend.

Well, the man has pride. And Thompson returned the very next year and claimed the trophy, doing so in splashing fashion — making his final eight shots and mocked former winner Larry Bird by keeping his right hand cocked after hitting the money ball.

Nobody opened an NBA game hotter from deep than Thompson, who set a record 10 straight makes to start a game. The Lakers were helpless that night because when a player such as Thompson gets into a rhythm, no defense can rattle him.

KLAY.

10-FOR-10 FROM THREE.

📺 @NBAonTNT

As was the case in these situations, the Warriors kept feeding him the ball. Thompson finally missed with 3 1/2 minutes left in the quarter, finished with 44 points and did this in front of his father, Mychal, the Lakers’ radio analyst.

“I’ve never hit 10 3s in a row in a game. That’s hard to do. I just happened to be on tonight and I’m happy I was able to do it in front of my family.” — Klay Thompson.

Klay Thompson knocks down 8 3-pointers in series-clincher.

Yes, we finish as we started, because Thompson had a basketball jones for Game 6s. In this one, he scored 30 points to help the Warriors eliminate the Grizzlies in the 2022 Western Conference semifinals.

Here’s why this one was special: Aside from being a Game 6, this was during his comeback season. And it was along the journey to the Warriors’ 2022 championship, the last time Thompson and his former team sipped champagne.

“Honestly, especially the perspective I’ve gained from the injuries I’ve had, to now be able to compete at the highest level … it’s a feeling that’s hard to describe.” — Thompson.

Shaun Powell has covered the NBA for more than 25 years. You can e-mail him here, find his archive here and follow him on X.

The views on this page do not necessarily reflect the views of the NBA, its clubs or Warner Bros. Discovery.