With Klay Thompson ending his 13-year run with the Warriors to join the Mavs, his former team will now pivot in a different direction. But it will not be easy filling that void, as Klay was a Bay Area legend, and finding a replacement for him is a challenging task. However, Warriors GM Mike Dunleavy Jr. is hopeful about the franchise’s future without one Splash Brother even though it will initially be a huge shock for three key members in their locker room.

Joining the ongoing Summer League broadcast of the Warriors vs. Suns game, Dunleavy addressed the sharpshooter’s departure and how the team plans on adjusting to it, “That’s just sort of how things evolve, with organizations, with teams, and as I said the other day, nothing lasts forever. And here we are pivoting to something different. I think it’s going to be good.”

But more importantly, the GM believes that not having China Klay in the locker room will be a major change for those who’ve been the pillars of this franchise with Thompson, “It’ll be different I think once camp starts, get going on practice, especially for Draymond, and Steph, and Steve, it’ll be a bit of a shock.”

Having won 4 championships with Klay in the last decade, it’s hard to imagine Steph Curry, Draymond Green, and Steve Kerr getting on the court without the other Splash Brother. But that will be the case going forward and the trio will have to make peace with it.

With Thompson finding a new home in Dallas and the Warriors making multiple moves in free agency so far, Dunleavy has faith that things will eventually play out just fine, “But you know what, I think Klay’s in a great spot and we’ll move forward and I think everything’s gonna be alright.” While he’ll be dearly missed by the Dub Nation, GSW has added a sharpshooter to take his place.

Buddy Hield, who is a career 40% shooter from deep range, will now be gearing up to dawn the Bay Area colors. Moreover, they have also added Kyle Anderson and De’Anthony Melton to the mix, hoping that they would help them become great again.

Warriors’ core trio reflects on Klay Thompson’s departure

As the Warriors now focus on building without Klay, the trio of Steph, Draymond, and Kerr is still processing everything. Steph’s mind is occupied with his first trip to the Olympics that’ll begin in a few days but he did share in an interview how he has been dealing with Klay’s move to Dallas. “Not having Klay, man, it still hasn’t really sunk in. Just because you’ve been doing it for 13 years together.”

Meanwhile, Draymond also revealed on his podcast that he might’ve even shed a tear or two when it finally hit him that Klay would no longer be his teammate. Especially when the sharpshooter shared an emotional IG post bidding farewell to the place he called home for thirteen years, Dray was sucked into a nostalgic trip because of it, “Seeing that was like Man! It just kinda take you back.”

However, DG was happy for his pal. “I’m happy for Klay. I think last year was a very trying year for him.”

Even Steve Kerr shared a similar sentiment and admitted that leaving the Golden State Warriors was probably the right move. “In the end, he really needed this career change and I think it’s going to be good for him.”

Although we will no longer see these four legends on the same roster, they will always stay connected after what they built together in Golden State. And hopefully, they can continue adding to their legacy in this new chapter as well.

Before you go, do not forget to check out Shaquille O’Neal’s ex-agent, Leonard Armato, to open up about the infamous Shaq-Kobe feud. Keep checking this space for more such updates.