Ex-Golden State Warriors Teammate Reveals What Klay Thompson Privately Told Him

Richard Jefferson spoke about Klay Thompson on ESPN.

Jan 25, 2022; San Francisco, California, USA; Golden State Warriors guard Klay Thompson (11) looks on between plays during the second quarter against the Dallas Mavericks at Chase Center. Mandatory Credit: Kelley L Cox-USA TODAY Sports / Kelley L Cox-USA TODAY Sports

On Monday, ESPN's Adrian Wojnarowski reported that Klay Thompson is signing a deal with the Dallas Mavericks.

Thompson leaving Golden State is one of the biggest storylines of the offseason.

The Warriors plan to retire Klay Thompson's jersey 👏 pic.twitter.com/ClHC6qz3hd

— ESPN (@espn) July 2, 2024

Following the news, 17-year NBA veteran Richard Jefferson shared an interaction he had with Thompson during the middle of the 2023-24 season.

Jefferson was briefly teammates with Thompson for part of two seasons.

Jefferson (via ESPN): "I've never shared this before out of respect to Klay... This was on Christmas Day. I get off the elevator, and I see Klay, and I'm like, 'Klay, what's up?' I'm like, 'Hey man, keep your mentals right.' He's like, 'Man, tell them to pay me my money.'

This was on Christmas Day. On Christmas Day, a guy that had won four Championships. I don't give a damn what anybody says how much money they gave him over the years because he turned their franchise around. That franchise is worth billions of dollars not just because of Steph, it's also because of Klay."

Thompson helped lead the Warriors to four NBA Championships and six Finals appearances over the previous nine seasons.

The five-time NBA All-Star finished this past year with averages of 17.9 points, 3.3 rebounds and 2.3 assists per contest while shooting 43.2% from the field and 38.7% from the three-point range in 77 games (63 starts).

Jun 16, 2022; Boston, Massachusetts, USA; Golden State Warriors forward Draymond Green (23), guard Klay Thompson (11) and guard Stephen Curry (30) celebrates after beating the Boston Celtics in game six of the 2022 NBA Finals to win the NBA Championship at TD Garden. Mandatory Credit: Kyle Terada-USA TODAY Sports / Kyle Terada-USA TODAY Sports

The Warriors had been coming off a year where they were the tenth seed in the Western Conference with a 46-36 record.

They lost to the Sacramento Kings in the play-in tournament, so they missed the NBA playoffs for the third time in five years.

November 05, 2012; Sacramento, CA, USA; Golden State Warriors small forward Richard Jefferson (44) warms up before the game against the Sacramento Kings at Sleep Train Arena. Mandatory Credit: Kelley L Cox-USA TODAY Sports / Kelley L Cox-USA TODAY Sports