After months of deliberation, the Golden State Warriors have finally made a decision on the future of The Splash Brothers. With Stephen Curry under contract until through 2016-17, the organization had to decide upon Klay Thompson‘s future.
According to Marc J. Spears of Yahoo! Sports, Thompson cashed in.
Klay gets four year $70m deal with warriors , source said
— Marc J. Spears (@MarcJSpears) October 31, 2014
More details arrived soon thereafter:
Klay Thompson's new contract extension with the Warriors includes no opt-out on either side, a source said.
— Marc J. Spears (@MarcJSpears) October 31, 2014
As for why the Warriors caved, the Sacramento Kings’ reported interest in Thompson may have something to do with it:
Kings made late push to try to acquire Klay Thompson for anyone not named Cousins or Gay, a source said. Might have helped push GS agreement
— Marc J. Spears (@MarcJSpears) October 31, 2014
Regardless of why it transpired, Thompson is due to receive an average of $17.5 million per season over a four-year span.
Thompson, 24, is a phenomenal 3-point shooter and a vastly improved perimeter defender. He averaged 18.4 points, 3.1 rebounds, 2.2 assists, 0.9 steals and 2.8 3-point field goals on a slash line of .444/.417/.795.
Thompson’s teammate, Curry, averaged 24.0 points, 8.5 assists, 4.3 rebounds, 1.6 steals and 3.3 3-point field goals on a slash line of .471/.424/.885 in 2013-14.
Curry will make roughly $6.5 million less than Thompson per season. His contract doesn’t expire until the summer of 2017.
The deal handed to Thompson likely has to do with legendary nature of The Splash Brothers as a unit. They ranked No. 1 and No. 2 in 3-point field goals made in 2013-14, and are, statistically speaking, the greatest shooting backcourt of all-time.
Thompson’s 3-and-D specialties, as well as his massive potential, make him one of the highest-paid shooting guards in the NBA.