Klay Thompson’s first year with the Dallas Mavericks didn’t go as planned—and if the team isn’t careful, it could get even worse.
Coming off a rollercoaster season that included the fallout from the Luka Doncic trade, Kyrie Irving’s ACL injury, and ultimately missing the playoffs, Thompson’s time in Dallas has been rocky at best. His numbers told the story: 14.0 points per game, his lowest since his rookie season, and 12.2 shots per game, also a career low since year one.
After signing a three-year, $50 million deal and arriving via a complicated six-team sign-and-trade, expectations were high. But the reality? A diminished role, a struggling offense, and a 35-year-old All-Star trying to find his footing in a very different system.
Now, some voices—like Sam Allred of The Smoking Cuban—are suggesting the Mavs ramp up Thompson’s role, even attempting to replicate the Warriors’ offensive blueprint that helped him win four titles alongside Stephen Curry.
“Kidd has an opportunity to recreate this offensive system,” Allred wrote, referring to the Warriors’ 2022 setup where Klay thrived alongside non-shooting bigs like Draymond Green and Kevon Looney—something Dallas could mirror with Anthony Davis and Dereck Lively II or Daniel Gafford.
But here’s the problem: Dallas doesn’t have Steph Curry.
For all of Kyrie Irving’s brilliance, he doesn’t bend defenses in the same way Curry does. The spacing, off-ball gravity, and chaos that Curry creates simply can’t be mimicked. Klay worked in Golden State because he was part of an ecosystem built around the most unguardable shooter in NBA history.
Trying to force that system onto Dallas, and onto an aging Klay, could backfire—especially when Thompson just posted a career-worst 41.2% from the field. He’ll turn 36 next season, and any attempt to force a Warriors-lite offense may only expose his physical decline further.
The Mavericks made a big swing trading for Klay. But if they try to double down by pretending they have the ingredients to cook like Golden State, that regret may only grow.