REPORTS: Klay Thompson planning to join Dallas Mavericks | CBS Sports

REPORTS: Klay Thompson planning to join Dallas Mavericks | CBS Sports

and we have some breaking news in the NBA where Clay Thompson is about to become a member of the Dallas Mavericks according to multiple reports Thompson is set to agree to a three-year $50 million deal with the defending Western Conference Champs the second generation star played his entire 11-year NBA career in Golden state where he was a five-time All-Star and part of four Championship winning teams of course that deal is pending a side and train with the Warriors and there is no one better to talk talked about this deal with Clay to the Mavs and our coach Avery Johnson coach your initial reaction to this big move terrific move by the Dallas Mavericks um but this comes to an end when you look at Klay Thompson’s uh career with the Golden State Warriors what an incredible run he had with uh Steph Curry and um obviously Steve cerr and their entire ownership Group which brought multiple championship to that franchise and Klay was a huge part of it but now Klay brings that experience of being a championship player he’s not the same as he was defensively but he could still knock down shots uh he’s basically you’re trading out Derek Jones Jr for Klay Thomson that that’s that’s a significant win for the Dallas Maverick yeah it’s hard to imagine him anywhere else other than Golden State but you’re getting a look at the projected starting lineup there for the Mavericks um coach they just obviously went to the finals you saw this team in person during that run when you look at clay here in this starting lineup what does he bring to the table and how do you think he’s going to mesh especially when you think about Luca and Kyrie a true Championship experience that’s what he breaks and when they got really stagnant especially in certain stretches of the third and fourth quarter Clay’s going to be able to knock down those shots um you know that they were missing uh they were shooting a lot of blank shots and uh came up empty so Clay is going to help spread the floor to give Luca and Kyrie even more room to operate he’ll take some pressure off of guys like PJ Washington who had never even been to the playoffs but now Clay’s coming in uh with the wealth of experience he also helped the coaching staff because you know he’s been there before as a player and uh he’ll be able to convey uh the right messaging to his teammates and and also uh assist uh Luca in terms of his approach specifically as he communicates with the officials now coach you mentioned it defensively uh there might still be some concerns and that was a big topic of conversation in the finals especially as it pertains to Luca and his defense clay might not be the same defensively as he was a couple of years ago but how does he fix that what are your expectations defensively for Clay on this team well he’s still respectable on the defensive end and defense is not just an individual game game it’s a team game so he’ll be able to communicate different coverages they’ll cover for one another but sometime your best defense is offense uh when you’re struggling defensively and you can’t knock down shots that that type of a reciprocal effect or negative effect on your game uh really uh slows down the momentum uh so I I would say that clay even though he’s not the same player defensively uh he’ll be able to keep pressure on OPP his defense with a shot making ability and Coach if you think about clay Luca Kyrie you know this time a year ago we were all wondering how are are Luca and Kyrie in to gel what’s that going to be like what are your expectations now for the Mavericks is it another finals appearance um can they go toe to- Toe with the likes of a a Boston or the New York Knicks if they do end up there yeah they have the potential but you know it’s a long season injury are the great neutralizer when you’re talking about uh trying to make it back to the finals there’s too many variable effects uh but I would say they have the potential the one thing that Clay is going to do for this Mavericks offense is provide more movement uh sometimes it was just about Luca dribbling the ball 19 20 times of Kyrie but clay loves to operate off streams downstreams flare screens uh quick actions so he’s going to provide some more movement and uh you know make sure that the Mavericks are not just a a fast ball team on offense he’ll be that curveball uh and be able to go deeper into their playbook he is our coach Avery Johnson joining us here on HQ we’re joining or talking about I should say that breaking news Klay Thompson about to become a member of the Mavs thanks so much Avery we appreciate it and of course that deal just a reminder pending a sign in trade with the Warriors getting a look at the odds to win the NBA Finals you see the Mavs there at Plus a, the favorites of course the Celtics to repeat followed by the nuggets and the Sixers the Mavs are on there at plus a thousand as Klay Thompson is going to join Luca and Kyrie in Dallas

Avery Johnson joins CBS Sports HQ to discuss Klay Thompson heading to Dallas after 11 years with Golden State.

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