When Klay Thompson signed with the Dallas Mavericks in 2024, he felt that he put himself in a position to win a fifth championship. But now, Luka Doncic is no longer around, Anthony Davis only played 29 games before being traded, and Kyrie Irving is still recovering from knee surgery.

The Mavericks have become an entirely different unit two years after Thompson's arrival. They are languishing in the bottom half of the standings with a 19-35 record and are highly unlikely to return to the NBA Finals, which they reached a season before Thompson joined the squad.

Dallas will continue to build around Cooper Flagg and find younger pieces for the future. For ClutchPoints' Brett Siegel, that does not bode well for Thompson and the other veterans.

“Other than (Daniel) Gafford, the one big name that we should try to keep an eye on, whether it's a buyout in the offseason or a potential trade, is Klay Thompson,” said Siegel on “Clutch Scoops.”

“Because he's gonna be in the final year of his contract, he doesn't seem to fit their timeline anymore, and he wants to be on a team that's gonna be contending for a championship. So I would keep an eye on Klay Thompson, what's gonna happen with him around the time of the draft.”

Article Continues Below

It's not difficult to imagine the 36-year-old Thompson playing for a new team next season. As Siegel mentioned, the Mavericks are moving in a different direction with the fast ascent of Flagg, making the older guys on the roster more expendable.

While Thompson is still one of the deadliest shooters in the NBA and has been serviceable off the bench for the Mavericks, he has been slowed down considerably by his past injuries.

The four-time champion is averaging career-lows of 11.6 points, 38.8% field goals, 2.4 rebounds, and 1.4 assists in 22.1 minutes per outing.