With the Warriors landing the big free agent of the NBA offseason in Kevin Durant, the chatter is about how the team will be able to share the ball with so many superstars on the court. James Harden said there’s only one ball and many others have chimed in as well.
Klay Thompson is one Warrior who has been thrown into the mix of guys who might have to sacrifice some shots now that Durant is on board. Already sharing the spotlight with back-to-back MVP Steph Curry, Thompson was asked if he would alter his role next season.
“I feel kind of disrespected that people keep using the term sacrifice to describe me and describe us,” Thompson said in an interview with The Vertical. “We all want to see each other do well. But I’m not sacrificing [expletive], because my game isn’t changing. I’m still going to try to get buckets, hit shots, come off screens. I want to win and have a fun time every game we play.”
Thompson averaged 22.1 points per game last season with the Dubs and salvaged the Warriors’ season when he hit 11 three pointers in Game 6 against Durant’s former team in Oklahoma City.
“The NBA season can get mundane; 82 games are so long and there can be some boredom,” Thompson said. “Now, we can embrace being the hated team and getting everyone’s best, and adding some tension every night. It’ll be a fun experience going into arenas on the road, with opposing fans hating what we’ve built.”
Durant and Thompson, along with Draymond Green, have been competing together on Team USA preparing for the Olympics and giving Warriors fans a glimpse of what’s to come next year.
In response to Thompson’s comments, Durant said, “We want Klay to stay Klay. We don’t want him to change. The games dictate where the shots come from. I may shoot 12 shots one night; Klay may shoot eight or nine shots one night, and Steph may shoot 25 shots one night. And it could be a different flow another night.”