The US Open men’s singles semi-final at Arthur Ashe Stadium was filled with a star-studded crowd. No, no, not the Hollywood stars, but rather fellow athletes. As the match between Frances Tiafoe and Taylor Fritz came to an end, the latter moved forward for his first-ever Grand Slam Final. And who was in the stands cheering the All-American showdown? Klay Thompson, Sabrina Ionescu, and more familiar basketball faces.

Both Thompson and Ionescu are known tennis fans with the latter present for Big Foe’s quarterfinal win over Bulgaria’s Grigor Dimitrov. The Liberty star’s husband, Hroniss Grasu, was also beside her, cheering Tiafoe animatedly. As for tonight’s match, the couple were joined by the new Mavs member as well as the Warriors’ head performance coach, Carl Bergstrom.

Thompson took to Instagram to share the wholesome photo, tagging Ionescu, Carl, and the US Open. In typical Klay fashion, he also had a hilarious caption to go with it. “HEY CARL! Good to see ya.” But it wasn’t just these four checking in to cheer their fellow athletes.

The Celtics legend Kevin Garnett, 4x WNBA champion Sue Bird, and Philadelphia star Tyrese Maxey were also at hand to watch the thrilling match.

It certainly is an iconic group to witness a historical moment. Taylor Fritz became the first American male tennis player to reach the US Open Finals since Andy Roddick did it in 2006. Fritz also has the chance to end the 21-year wait to lift the US Open trophy since, you guessed it, Roddick triumphed in 2003. So, no pressure!

Going back to our ex-Warriors superstar, this is perhaps the 4x champion’s first meeting with anyone or anything related to his home of 13 years. And there’s no doubt that it was a happy meetup, unlike the 34-year-old’s less-than-pleasant exit from the Bay Area.

Remembering the Klay Thompson-Warriors painful adieu

If you thought Thompson going scoreless against Sacramento in the play-in tournament was bad, just go over all those emotional goodbyes from teammates and fans when GSW announced his move to Dallas in a six-team sign and trade. This was the only place he had known for 13 years. The same team that he helped build from the ground up to a dynasty.

So naturally, it meant an agonizing leave-taking. It is during these moments that we are reminded of the fact that sports have a cutthroat business side to it, too. Despite Klay’s major contributions to the Dubs in crucial stretches (and even the lesser discussed ones like when he took charge of the first phase of the 2016 playoffs when Steph was healing from a Grade 1 tear in his right MCL), his declining and underwhelming performances after his return from injuries left a lot to be desired.

And finally, when Klay Thompson asked for an extension which he believed he deserved, the franchise and its star guard clashed. The two could never reach a mutual agreement. Although the 5x All-Star gave it his best, accepting and rocking his Sixth Man role, channeling his inner Manu Ginobili, it wasn’t enough to convince the front office to accept his terms.

Needless to say, there were more than enough suitors for the Splash Brother. But his choice was Dallas, 1500+ miles away from California, and his beloved ‘Nordic Knife’. Even though it was a heart-wrenching departure, everybody echoed Steph’s sentiment that ‘Killa Klay’ will find joy in the game again.

Considering his genuinely happy face in the photos and his statement, “It’s nice to have a whole new fresh start, a whole new group of guys to get to know. A whole new city. It’s cool. And I’m going to embrace the heck out of this opportunity,” perhaps that pain was necessary for a brand new Klay Thompson resurgence.