Adrian Wojnarowski says the Lakers are in play for Klay Thompson: "I'm told LeBron James called Klay Thompson right when free agency opened"

The 2024 free agency period has officially begun, and some of the dominoes have started to fall. The Warriors waived Chris Paul, who is on his way to San Antonio to join Wemby. The Clippers also parted ways with Paul George, who is rumored to be moving to Philadelphia. KCP is departing Denver for Orlando.

Klay Thompson 's fate, however, is still up in the air. Thompson, who became a free agent at 6:00 p.m., was the hottest name in the rumor mill in the months leading to Sunday. According to NBA senior insider Adrian Wojnarowski , Klay and his camp have been talking to several teams, most notably the Mavs and Lakers.

"I'm told LeBron James called Klay Thompson right when free agency opened at 6:00 p.m. Eastern, reached out and talked to Klay Thompson," said Woj on SportsCenter.

LeBron is willing to take less money

Klay having plenty of suitors isn't a surprise because, at 34, there's still a lot left in his tank despite getting relegated to a bench role with the Warriors last season. After unfollowing the Dubs, Thompson has recently followed the IG accounts of Mavs stars Luka Doncic, Kyrie Irving, and even legend Dirk Nowitzki. That led to rumors that the Mavs could be the front-runners and LeBron may be trying to change that.

Woj also added that LeBron is willing to take less money , perhaps even upwards of $20 million, so that the Lakers can have their full mid-level exception. By calling Klay personally, maybe LeBron wants to make sure his 'sacrifice' isn't going to waste.

"The expectation that I have right now is these conversations, this negotiation will go into tomorrow," continued Woj. "There probably will not be a resolution tonight. But certainly, Dallas, the Lakers, and the Clippers are working to be involved in this. Those are the prominent teams for Klay Thompson, whose career is gonna be somewhere other than Golden State once this free agency period is over."

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Lakers fans want Klay

Ever since his falling out with the Warriors, Lakers fans have salivated about the possibility of landing one of the most prolific shooters in the game's history. Klay's dad, Mychal, played for the Showtime Lakers and has long wanted to bring his son to Lala Land. Most recently, Lakers super fan and recording artist Snoop Dogg said Klay would be a perfect fit in L.A.

"I'm hopeful that we can get us Klay Thompson," said Snoop. "His daddy is Mychal, he runs for the Lakers, it's an easy transit down the road. I mean, he doesn't fit with them anymore. They're trying to minimize him. He needs to be on a team where he is wide open, and we love getting him that look."

With the Lakers' new head coach, a sharpshooter himself, and the team drafting a shooter in Dalton Knecht with their 17th pick in last week's draft, we could see a new style of play in Los Angeles next season. And it's going to be one where Klay can thrive or at least get his looks and knock down threes. That is if the Lakers beat the Mavs and Clippers to the gun.

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