Klay Thompson shouldn't take Warriors pay cut, Kendrick Perkins says
Perkins advocates for Klay to decline pay cut from Dubs originally appeared on NBC Sports Bayarea
Klay Thompson should try to get as much money as he can, Kendrick Perkins believes.
Speaking to Stephen A. Smith on Monday's episode of "First Take," the former NBA center explained why the 33-year-old shouldn't take anything less than what he believes he truly is worth.
"Why should Klay Thompson take a pay cut? Let's be honest here, why should Klay take one? He doesn't have to," Perkins told Smith. "There's teams around the league that would actually give him a bag that he deserves and rightfully so.
"I don't care about what he did this postseason, we already know what Klay Thompson is capable of doing."
Perkins' comments come two days after The Athletic's Shams Charania and Anthony Slater reported that the Warriors organization expects Thompson to take a pay cut, similar to Andrew Wiggins last offseason.
As it stands, Thompson is expected to earn $43.2 million in the 2023-24 NBA season, the final year of a five-year, $189 million contract extension he signed before the 2019-20 season.
Perkins argues that there are teams in the NBA that will be willing to pay Thompson a max contract, which is why he believes the Warriors star shouldn't accept anything less than what he's worth.
"So why should Klay Thompson sacrifice and take less money to stay when he deserves a big bag? I don't get it," Perkins added. "But at some point, all good things come to an end.
"Just like the San Antonio Spurs, that dynasty is over."
With the NBA's new CBA restricting how much teams will spend on roster construction, Thompson's contract certainly will be a talking point during the Warriors' offseason.
Early in the Warriors' playoff run, ESPN's Adrian Wojnarowski reported that Thompson was expecting a max-level contract extension in the offseason. However, Thompson's showing in the playoffs left something to be desired, especially from a player expecting to get more than $30 million a year.
Although he averaged 18.5 points, 4.5 rebounds and 2.3 assists per game in the Warriors' 13-game playoff run this season, he shot 38.8 percent from the field and 36.8 percent from beyond the arc.
In six games against the Los Angeles Lakers in the Western Conference semifinals, Thompson saw his scoring average drop to 16.2 points per game and his shooting percentage dip to 34.3 percent from the field, though his field goal percentage from the 3-point line was 38.1 percent.
RELATED: Report: Klay expected to take pay cut in Dubs extension offer
As the Warriors start their offseason earlier than usual, there are many questions surrounding what Golden State will do with Thompson, Draymond Green and Bob Myers' contracts.
Though if Perkins had his way, Thompson would be getting a whole lot of money in the offseason.
