SAN FRANCISCO — The mood in San Francisco, CA will be celebratory as Golden State welcomes Klay Thompson and the Dallas Mavericks to the Chase Center Tuesday night. Thompson will arrive as a visitor for the first time in his career, and the Warriors are prepared to hand out captain hats to the fans in commemoration of his storied tenure by the Bay.
Thompson has done his best to downplay his return to the region where he won four championships, but emotions will tell all as the game gets underway. Thompson is still settling into his role as the Mavs go-to shooter, with a recent skid dropping his three-point efficiency to 35% on the young season.
Thompson is averaging 12 points over his last five games after surging out of the gate and making only one three-pointer in each of the heartbreaking recent close losses to the Phoenix Suns and Denver Nuggets, but there’s no better motivation than facing the ex to get the sharpshooter out of his slump.
Despite a breakup after spending his entire 13-year career with the Warriors before jumping ship to land in Dallas, there is no chance that Thompson gets booed as he is announced to the crowd prior to the game. If Thompson lights up the scoresheet, some respectful groans for a three-point barrage would be music to Mavs’ fans' ears as Dallas tries to erase a current 1-3 stretch that has dropped them to 5-5 on the year.
Golden State, meanwhile, is attempting to live the motto of revenge by living well by getting off to an 8-2 start which currently ties them for second in the Western Conference with Phoenix.
While moving on from Thompson, Oklahoma product Buddy Hield has emerged as the Warriors’ secondary scorer behind Steph Curry, albeit from the bench. A sniper as well, Hield is flirting with a 50% three-point average and is chucking up threes at the same rate as the baby-faced future Hall of Famer Curry.
Hield arrived in the Bay in a complicated six-team trade that brought Thompson to Dallas and he is signed through 2027. The resulting win-win trade for all parties gave Thompson a fresh start while the Warriors found a reasonable replacement.
As noted, the Mavericks are currently a .500 team as they eagerly await the return of Dereck Lively and P.J. Washington to fortify the rotation, but the chance for vindication is knocking on their front door once again.
Tonight’s clash is also the Mavericks' first foray into the 2024-25 edition of the Emirates NBA Cup. Each conference was randomized into three separate groups, with Dallas in a block that includes the Nuggets, Warriors, New Orleans Pelicans, and Memphis Grizzlies.
Group play runs Tuesdays and Fridays through December 3rd, which will see Dallas face each team once. While it doesn’t have the history behind it yet to make it a marquee event just yet, winning the NBA Cup can be a motivating factor for the runners-up to the ‘23-24 NBA Championship to show their growth and dedication to reaching their end goal of the Larry O’Brien.
Plus raising an In-Season Tournament banner would have a different perception when placing it next to the one outlining their Conference win last summer.
Do you think the Mavericks will get off to a strong start in the NBA Cup during Thompson’s first game against back in the Bay? Share your predictions with Irvin on X (formerly Twitter) @Twittirv.
