In this episode of the Draymond Green Show, host Travis "Trav" Walton and Draymond Green discuss Klay Thompson’s recent decision to join the Dallas Mavericks. The conversation weaves between light‑hearted gym banter—where Klay jokingly calls teammates "the opps"—and deeper reflections on the emotional weight of Klay leaving the Warriors, his legacy, and the impact on both franchises. Draymond expresses a mix of hurt, competitiveness, and genuine hope that Klay thrives in Dallas, noting that a successful season could help Klay appreciate his contributions to Golden State, including his upcoming statue, jersey retirement, and the lasting imprint on the Warriors’ DNA. They also anticipate future matchups, envisioning a potential conference‑final showdown that would test Klay against his former teammates. Throughout, the tone oscillates between playful camaraderie and sincere contemplation about loyalty, legacy, and the evolving narratives of NBA careers.
Chapters
And you know I hate to do it, but man, I gotta ask 'cause you didn't tell me last time, we gotta talk about Klay Thompson.
I'm tired of talking about Klay. Forget Klay.
You ain't talk to me. You put me on ice last time.
You was like, "Man, I don't wanna talk about it this early." I was hurt. My feelings was hurt. I was like, "All right, dog, I'm gonna let it slide." My feelings ain't hurt no more. I'm over it now. And I'm sick of talking about Klay. Klay walks up to me, we was in the gym. We was in the gym. Klay walked up to me and he said, Trav was in the gym first. I had left 'cause I had to go to Pilates. Klay was coming in the gym after Trav saw him. He walked up, Trav I think was talking to Kai, talking to somebody. Klay walk up, "Oh, you talking to the opps?" "I'm be talking to the opps." So Trav told me later that day. And I said—
Wow.
And Trav was like, "Is he serious?" And I was like, well, he ain't serious. That's just how Klay talk. And that's just how, that's his sister, who, you know. Yeah, yeah, yeah. But there is some seriousness to it for sure. So then the next day I'm working out, Klay coming in after, and now I'm talking to Kai. And sure enough, Klay walks up, he says the same thing. Come on, Kai, you can't be talking to the opps. And when he said that, I told Trav, I said, "And now I'm gonna run through his chest." Permission. Because there's some seriousness to that joke. Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah. I know Klay, I know how Klay think. I've been playing with this, on the same team with this brother for 12 years. I know how he think. There's a lot of seriousness No, for sure. To that statement.
Well, but you gotta think like, one, he gotta stake his claim. You know what I mean? He gotta stake his claim with the Mavericks and he gotta go tell the Mavericks like, "Look, me and Draymond gonna be on this." You know what I mean?
Yeah.
Like, "They don't like me no more." Like, he need for y'all not to like him. In order for him to be successful. You know what I mean? When y'all match up, he needs y'all not to like him. He don't need— it's, you know what I mean? Like, y'all the opps.
Unfortunately for him, he gonna get a great tribute video. People gonna be very happy to see him.
Yeah, no, but it's true.
He gonna cry.
Yep.
He gonna cry. He probably gonna bring Rocco to the game. People gonna have Rocco signs and stuff like that. So unfortunately for him, he has to deal with those emotions.
Yeah.
And he come back on November 12th.
Yeah.
I'm looking forward to him. Now honestly though, I think that's gonna, my hope for Klay is this, my hope for Klay. And my hope for him is that, I hope and pray that he go to Dallas and play great. And the reason I hope he go to Dallas and play great is because that will allow him to appreciate what he's done here. Like right now, if I'm totally honest with you, I think it's like a stain on it. Like I feel like it's like a stain on it for him.
Yeah.
And so many times people don't get to, and Klay hasn't said this is a stain on it, by the way. It's just kind of a little how I feel in my gut. Yeah.
I was so mad too.
So many times people in the NBA, like, don't have a place to call home. And to know, like, and like, again, regardless of how he may feel, he getting a statue here, his jersey going up.
All day.
He's a legend. This is home forever.
Forever.
You know, like all of that. Like, but you just want him to feel how he's supposed to feel.
Right.
Leaving from a place that you built.
Yeah.
And I hope, that for him. And I feel like, because I, again, I just know who Klay Thompson is as a person. I feel like if he go to Dallas and play great, that then he could be like—
Then he take that ear ring off.
All right, that's cool. I'm cool now. You know what I'm saying? He just so competitive, man. And so I just want that for him, bro. Like, I want that for him.
Yeah, I was thinking the same thing. I was like, it's almost good for him to have kind of like a new beginning because like y'all built this Warrior thing, right? And at a certain point, like, you know, y'all three, y'all DNA is, you know, stuck in it. You know what I mean?
For sure.
And so with his injuries and coming back, it wasn't like he wasn't playing good or playing— it's just time, when time start catching up and these young dudes start getting better, you know what I mean? There comes like a compass, you know what I mean? You reach that compass and you gotta say like, You know, as a vet, you like, well, shit, bro, I'm still who I am. You know what I mean? But I think, you know, he put up, like, he probably put more pressure on himself, you know what I mean? To try and be whatever it needed to be for him to feel like, ah, I told you I can do it. So I like him in Dallas and I wanna see him successful in Dallas too because, Similar to what you said, he gonna be able to put the Warriors in his own legacy box.
For sure.
And he gonna be able to share a lot of that shit with, you know, his new teammates. You know what I mean? Because now he free, you know what I mean?
100%.
It wasn't no beef, it was just time to move on. You know what I mean? Because that chapter of your life, you can say, you know what I mean? Like you can own that and say, I built, you know what I mean? I was a part, I built that. I was a part of building that. And so, you know, it's still a little ickiness just because of just how like I'm still good. I'm still better than what you think. And so—
That's right.
I can't wait to see y'all play, bro. I can't wait to see y'all play against each other. Ooh wee, I'm gonna have to come to that game. And it's already beef with the Warriors and Dallas anyway, so—
For sure.
We might as well just keep that little, you know, situation cracking.
So it's kind of crazy that Klay kind of went and joined the opps.
For real? For real. Hey, hey, man, it may be something to that.
We beat them in the playoff series 2 years ago.
It may be something to that.
It is. He joined the opps.
He joined the opps and calls you the opps.
He called me the opps.
Come on, man.
Like how I become the opps and you join the opps? It's cool though. Hopefully the way it shake out, we meet them in the conference finals, which means if we meet them in the conference finals, he definitely had a good year.
Hell yeah.
And unfortunately it would just have to end, you know, not quite how he want it, but that would be great.
