Klay Thompson says it's Ignorant to think the Warriors' Dynasty is over

Klay Thompson just wants to go out there and ball.

With the possible exception of Rocco, he loves nothing more in life than lacing up his sneakers and taking to the court to play. And he wants to do it for as long as he possibly can. This is widely known among basketball fans, but he explained it in concrete details during a new interview with ESPN’s Cari Champion.

“I want to play until I’m 38, 39, 40 years old,” Thompson said. “That’s my plan, especially with the way I can shoot the ball.”

But his plans are on hold for a little while as he rehabilitates from a torn ACL he suffered in Game 6 of the 2019 NBA Finals. He wants to get back onto the court as soon as he possibly can. At the same time, he knows he has to be cautious.

“I’ve just heard varying opinions, especially medically,” he said. “I don’t want to rush it.”

“I’d love to see the floor this season. I doubt it’s before the All-Star break.”

At this point, Thompson is fully aware that he may not play a major on-court role for the team in the 2019-2020 season. He has also heard the chatter from fans and the media, saying that the Warriors’ dynasty is finished. In his head, this is simply wrong. He has faith that the team can succeed with the pieces they currently have.

“I think that’s a little premature to say there’s no more dynasty,” he said. “We still have Stephen Curry, a two-time MVP; Draymond Green, a Defensive Player of the Year. Adding D’Angelo Russell was an incredible get for us...that gave me and my teammates a breath of fresh life.”

But it wasn’t just that Thompson was expressing optimism about his teammates. He made bold claims about himself and his return, whenever it may happen.

“To say the dynasty is over, I think, is a little ignorant,” he said. “I’m going to come back 110 percent. I think I’m going to come back even better and more athletic. It would not be smart to count the Dubs out.”

And it’s good to see him talk with that level of confidence. Resiliency is a trait that has defined more or less all sports dynasties and the Warriors are no different. This is a team that took on the best player in recent NBA history for the championship four times in a row, beat him three of those times and nearly won all four. This is a team that has overcome 3-1 and 3-2 deficits in two separate Western Conference Finals and trailed by double digits in Game 7 of both of those series. This is a team that, upon losing its best player in Game 5 of the 2019 Western Conference Semifinals, won that game before winning another five straight games en route to their fifth consecutive NBA Finals appearance. At this point, it’s clear that the Warriors haven’t been a team to go down without a fight.

Thompson might be the perfect example of the toughness that his team has demonstrated time and time again. During his career, he has appeared in over 93 percent of the Warriors’ regular season games and missed just one playoff game out of the 124 he’s had the opportunity to play in while garnering a reputation as one of the league’s most durable players. In Game 1 of the 2018 Finals, J.R. Smith slid into his leg and Thompson appeared to be in tremendous pain as he walked off the court with what turned out to be a high ankle sprain. He missed less than one quarter of action and appeared in each of the remaining three games in the series to help the Warriors complete a sweep for their third title in four years. And, oh yeah, after tearing his ACL, he nailed two free throws and tried to jog back on defense before being removed from the game.

All Klay Thompson wants to do is play basketball. All the Warriors want to do is win. And while it’s highly unlikely that the upcoming season’s team will be as good as the previous few teams, everyone involved, including Klay, will do everything they can to prove that wrong.