Klay Thompson Gave a Very Real, Refreshingly Honest Interview Last Night About Being Benched In the Closing Minutes Of The Warriors Win

Before we even get into Klay, we have to talk about how hilarious it is having Draymond yell out the answer to the question before it’s even asked. Pretty sure he’s doing that to protect his guy, but Draymond always gotta be the loud voice in the room. Then as Klay is giving his heartfelt, honest answer you’ve got Draymond singing in the background. One of a kind. The good and the bad, he’ll never change. 

Now say what you want about Klay Thompson, but last night the man gave one of the realest interviews I’ve see in a while. That honestly felt like something you see out of a movie with how rare it is to witness from a pro athlete. You’ve got a 4x NBA champ, 5x All star, 2x All NBA, one of the best shooters the game has ever seen, great two way player, seemingly coming to grips before our very eyes that his time as a star is over. That sand in the hour glass is dwindling and for the first time in the three years since his major injuries, he knows it.

There’s that quote from Moneyball when the scout tells Billy that the opportunity to play sports for a living is not forever. 

We're all told at some point in time that we can no longer play the children's game, we just don't... don't know when that's gonna be. Some of us are told at eighteen, some of us are told at forty, but we're all told.

Now I don’t expect many to feel for Klay given the fact that

 1) he’s made over $250M in his career 2) achieved amazing success 3) still getting solid minutes 4) we’re all assholes

but when you consider this man had several prime years taken from him because of back to back torn ACL/torn achilles injuries then it’s brutal to think about. You could feel him dying inside during those 90 or so seconds. Still wanted to give credit to the young guys like Gui Santos, Jonathan Kuminga, and Brandin Podziemski who helped the Warriors beat Brooklyn on Monday night, but you know it’s eating away at him inside to accept not being out there in the closing minutes. 

Early on this season people ripped Kerr for keeping Klay out there in crunch time only to see Golden State lose tight game after tight game. Lately he’s changed his tune and leaned on Kuminga, who has really come into his own. It’s the right move if you watch Klay out there, but making that call after coaching Thompson for over a decade is not for the weak. Egos are so fragile in the NBA that it can seem like navigating a minefield as you try to avoid blowing up a locker room full of franchise legends like they have. Now they’ve reached a point though where everyone is on the same page. 

Obviously Klay is upset, who wouldn’t be? Part of it is Kerr not closing with him but I bet the bigger part is his frustration in himself that he’s not playing at his peak level anymore. 

Now at some point you just have to accept it and embrace a new role with the team. Seems like Klay is nearing that phase. The Warriors are a game out of the 10 seed in the West so it’s not like their season is over, but they gotta get their shit together now. Whether it’s coming off the bench or acknowledging a minutes reduction, Klay has to be okay with this. Every player goes through it and right now it’s his time. I respect Klay Thompson so much for giving that kind of insight to the fans. Shit was very real. I’m rooting for him to wind back the clock once more because when he’s on there’s not many that shoot a prettier basketball. I’ve always had an appreciation for him whether it be his pure jumpshot, his care-free attitude, or even his admiration for scaffolding. Hopefully he’s able to find it one more time. 

Father time, you’re a real cunt