The Dallas Mavericks' biggest splash of the summer came in early July when they completed a six-team sign-and-trade to acquire Klay Thompson from the Golden State Warriors.
It was known that Dallas was looking for more shooting on the open market, and they happened to land one of the greatest shooters ever in Thompson. Shooting was a massive weakness for Dallas during the NBA Finals, and they addressed that need quickly.
Thompson signed with Dallas over the Los Angeles Lakers, and he is eager to get to work.
Klay Thompson is the 'guaranteed' starting small forward for Mavericks
The entire city of Dallas can't wait to see Thompson put on a Mavs uniform, and NBA insider Shams Charania recently reported what Thompson's role will be for Dallas.
Charania said that Thompson would be the "guaranteed starter" at the small forward position. It's been clear for a while now that Thompson would likely be the starting three, especially with Derrick Jones Jr. signing with the LA Clippers, and this report by Charania confirms that.
Last season for the Warriors, Thompson averaged 17.9 points, 3.3 rebounds, 2.3 assists, and 0.6 steals per game while shooting 43.2 percent from the field and 38.7 percent from downtown. Last season was the first time in Thompson's career outside of his rookie year that he didn't start in every game, and now he likely has the chance to do that for the Mavs.
Thompson knows he may not be the same defender he was in his prime, but he also knows that he is still a deadly shooter. He is the exact piece that the Mavs needed to add next to Luka Doncic and Kyrie Irving, and he is going to make their offense even more dynamic than before.
Thompson's presence on the floor will open up the floor for Doncic and Irving to get downhill due to the attention he commands from behind the arc, and if his defender helps off, he'll have a wide-open three.
Thompson being the starter at small forward for Dallas is going to be a sight to see at the American Airlines Center for their home opener here in a couple of months, and he seems overwhelmingly joyful to be getting a fresh start.
For all the latest on Klay Thompson and the Dallas Mavericks all offseason long, stay tuned.
