Mavs ‘Best Day Ever!’ 3 Analysts Grade Klay Thompson-Led Moves
DALLAS - The reviews - from a trio of keen long-time Dallas Mavs watchers - are in.
And our three-man panel of analysts is impressed with what one of them, veteran Mavs radio voice Chuck Cooperstein, calls possibly “the finest 24 hours of Mavs front-office work ever.”
DallasBasketball.com editor-in-chief Dalton Trigg, in summarizing Dallas’ start-of-free-agency work in acquiring Klay Thompson, Quentin Grimes and Naji Marshall, concurs.
“Klay Thompson might be 34, but I can confidently say he’s the biggest signing the Mavs have ever had in free agency,” Trigg said of Thompson, who comes to Dallas in a Warriors sign-and-trade that gives him a three-year contract worth $50 million.
“Maybe that says more about the Mavs history in free agency than it does Klay, but a big moment regardless.”
Part of the delight here for Mavs fans comes in the news that Dallas, with Kyrie Irving helping with the courting of Klay, out-foxed LeBron James and the Los Angeles Lakers, who actually offered Thompson more money to “stay home” on the California coast.
Said Trigg as Dallas comes off its NBA Finals appearance: “So not only did Klay pick the Mavs over the Lakers… he also left $30 million on the table because Dallas is clearly the better situation?”
Our man Richie Whitt, the Mavs newspaper beat writer dating back to the mid-‘90’s, has come by his cynicism honestly. But not much cynicism here.
"Klay is not only an upgrade,'' Whitt said. "In terms of fitting a need, he's an almost perfect future Hall-of-Fame upgrade. Luka, Kyrie and Klay might be Dallas' most exciting trio since "The Three J's.''
Said Coop, also going back in history by comparing this effort to the 1998 NBA Draft night moves that brought future superstars Dirk Nowitzki and Steve Nash to Dallas: “(GM) Nico Harrison and the Mavs front office are playing some Bobby Fischer-level chess.”
