Feb 8, 2023; Portland, Oregon, USA; Golden State Warriors shooting guard Jordan Poole (3) celebrates a three-point shot with Klay Thompson (11) during the first half against the Portland Trail Blazers at Moda Center. Mandatory Credit: Soobum Im-Imagn Images Soobum Im-Imagn Images

New Report on Klay Thompson's True Feeling on Jordan Poole

Originally posted on Golden State Warriors on SI
By Grant Mona | Last updated May 29, 2025 1:30 PM ET

When Klay Thompson tore his ACL during the 2019 NBA Finals and the Warriors lost Kevin Durant to the Brooklyn Nets in free agency, it became evident that the team was entering a minor rebuild.

The situation worsened when Thompson tore his Achilles while rehabbing from his knee injury, which appeared to signal the end of the Golden State dynasty. The 2020 season was particularly disastrous for the Warriors.

Just two years later in 2022, they hoisted their 4th Larry O'Brien trophy in 8 years, with Thompson healthy and a new budding superstar in Jordan Poole emerging. In that 2021-2022 season, Poole was more efficient and impactful offensively than Thompson and had a higher True Shooting Percentage as well.

Poole's emergence led to some uncomfortable conversations surrounding the team in the offseason. Poole earned a contract extension and then the incident with Draymond Green happened and the team never fully recovered.

While the Warriors made the playoffs, Poole's statistics dropped, and Thompson's rose after he fully recovered from both of his major injuries.

The San Francisco Standard's Tim Kawakami recently went on The Tom Tolbert Show to discuss what happened between Thompson and Poole after the 2022 NBA Finals.

"They [Warriors] had to move off of Jordan for two reasons, Draymond [Green] and Klay [Thompson]. I've heard this more and more, that Klay was not comfortable with this guy [Jordan Poole] pushing him and pushing him and pushing him and Klay thought 'I've earned this starting role. Why does this guy keep saying he should be the starter?'" Kawakami said.

Klay Thompson played in 69 games in the 2022-2023 season and averaged nearly 22 points per game, shooting 41.2% from beyond the arc, returning to the prime version of himself on the offensive end.

This article first appeared on Golden State Warriors on SI and was syndicated with permission.

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