Klay Thompson’s long-rumored Lakers connection resurfaced after his split from the Dallas Mavericks. Once again, his father Mychal Thompson made a push for the sharpshooter to bring his talents to Los Angeles.
Mychal Thompson Isn’t Giving Up on Klay Thompson Joining Lakers
When Klay Thompson entered free agency in the summer of 2024, his father Mychal Thompson, held out hope that his son would finally put on the purple and gold. The elder Thompson publicly touted Southern California as the ideal destination. Instead, Klay opted for the Dallas Mavericks to link up with Luka Dončić and Kyrie Irving.
Fast-forward two chaotic years, and history has repeated itself. Following an official contract buyout between Thompson and the Mavericks on August 21, Mychal made another attempt to recruit his son to Los Angeles.
On the Locked on Heat podcast, Mychal admitted that he once again pitched the Lakers as the logical landing spot.
“The Lakers were pursuing him heavily,” Mychal said. “I thought he’d be perfect at that time to team up with LeBron and Anthony Davis to provide outside shooting, along with Austin Reaves, that we needed.
“And I was talking about how perfect the situation was for him; the fit for him was here in L.A., and he kind of agreed with me to a certain point, a certain extent, but the lure of playing with Luka and Kyrie in Dallas won over my advice.
“Once I knew he was leaving Dallas, I tried to persuade him again to come back to L.A., come home. But playing with Giannis and Bam, and playing for Pat Riley and Erik Spoelstra was just too much of an attraction for him to turn down.”
In Dallas, the veteran sharpshooter expected to contend for titles alongside Dončić and Irving. However, the team’s core dissolved rapidly. Dončić was traded to the Lakers prior to the 2025 deadline. Irving suffered a major knee injury shortly after, and the Mavericks pivoted into a full front-office and roster retool.
Klay Thompson’s Father Declares Heat’s Championship Season Must End One Way
Mychal Thompson also laid out the stakes for Miami’s upcoming season. With the franchise boasting a powerhouse core built around Giannis Antetokounmpo, Bam Adebayo, and newly signed shooter Klay Thompson, the elder Thompson made it clear that standard playoff runs won’t cut it.
“You don’t bring Giannis in with Bam to not be a deep playoff contender or championship team,” he said. “Anything short of a Championship this year is a bust. I’m sure Pat Riley and Spoelstra are feeling that way too.
“That’s the way the Heat better be thinking! We better get to the ECF and Finals. Not only get to the finals but win the finals! The Heat with Giannis, Bam, Klay, all these veterans, anything less than a championship is a failure!”
Klay left nearly $10 million on the table in his Dallas buyout to sign a two-year deal starting near $5.6 million with Miami. The sharpshooter specifically targets a fifth championship ring alongside Antetokounmpo and Adebayo. The star-studded roster now carries immediate “championship-or-bust” expectations across the league.