No matter how Joe Lacob mourns his star shooting guard Klay Thompson’s decline with quotes like “never ends well” or “it’s just the way it is,” citing various business nuances, the Warriors are never going to be the same since their Splash Brother broke out. In reality, Klay had become an inevitable part of the Golden Dynasty during his 13-year stint with the team. This importance was recently highlighted when former All-Star player Jeff Teague, from the Atlanta Hawks, portrayed Klay Thompson’s significance for Draymond Green on his podcast show.

The 36-year-old ex-Hawks guard recalled a game against the Golden State Warriors from the 2016-17 season while he was playing for the Indiana Pacers, mentioning Paul George in his conversation. “I hated playing y’all because maybe like back off of Draymond, but then you can pass and you see the whole floor,” Teague started, emphasizing Green’s ball-handling skills. He detailed the conundrum the Dubs shooters caused that year, armed with KD, “But then you would go dribble hand-off with Steph, and I don’t got anybody to help with me.”

Teague highlighted Klay’s basketball prowess, which is not a luxury anymore for the Dubs, “That’s the same thing with Klay. …He getting a rebound by pushing the ball. …I’m telling Paul all of them like guard him and the like no no we got to back up he ain’t gonna shoot.” Aware of Klay’s abilities, Teague added, “I’m like y’all tripping. …he’s just a taller Rondo.” This was evident as Klay averaged a career-high 22.3 points that year, fueling the Dubs’ championship run after losing the previous season to the Cavs in the 2015-16 NBA Finals.

Will Klay Thompson’s memories upset the Warriors in the future?

When Jeff was heaping up all the praise from the prime era of the Golden Dynasty, Draymond Green seemed full of nostalgia, smiling widely. As Jeff finished praising Klay, Green concluded, “You know a lot of teams did it, a lot of teams do it. And I absolutely love when they be tripping.” Mimicking the opponents’ defensive struggles, Draymond added, “Oh you…Oh you’re just gonna let me sit here in this pocket?”

However, whatever Green was reminiscing about is all in the past. Klay is past his prime, which is why the Warriors were not ready to give him what he needed, hoping to rebuild a better roster. Lacob experienced it firsthand when Klay scored 0 points, with 4 rebounds and 1 assist on 0/10 shooting from the field in their last season [2023-24] game against the Sacramento Kings.

Considering recent performances, Klay Thompson has not been the asset he once was and did not help his team to the playoffs. The team is now focusing on younger players to secure Curry a final championship before his retirement and build a better future with new arrivals.