Golden State Warriors: 4 Reasons Why They Cannot Trade Klay Thompson

Apr 20, 2013; Denver, CO, USA; Golden State Warriors guard Klay Thompson (11) during the first half of game one of the first round of the 2013 NBA Playoffs against the Denver Nuggets at the Pepsi Center. The Nuggets won 97-95. Mandatory Credit: Chris Humphreys-USA TODAY Sports

Many may disagree with me here, but Klay Thompson, without a doubt, is the third most important player on the Golden State Warriors.

Sure, he was inconsistent, but once that goes away, the Warriors are going to be one of the best teams out there.

Instead of Stephen Curry always showering an opponent with threes, it’s going to be both of them, always showering opponents with threes.

The Warriors are looking to make a trade for Dwight Howard, which may or may not be a bad idea. Still, however, if they want to make it happen, they’ll have to put Harrison Barnes on the trading block.

Barnes is a rising star who averaged 16.2 PPG in the playoffs. He may have high potential, but he’s still not Curry’s partner in crime. Barnes is great, but the Lakers need a small forward, and the Warriors really want Howard, as we’ve seen so many times.

Here’s why the Warriors should stay away from dealing Thompson:

1. Splash Brothers:

Thompson and Curry are the splash brothers. Break that up, and the defenders now know who to run at. Curry will almost never see daylight.

If Thompson remains, however, he can still be able to shoot the 3-pointers when Curry swings the ball. These passes that the two guards make to each other are integral parts of the Warriors’ offense.

2. Potential:

If we know anything, it’s that Klay Thompson has incredibly high potential. He was selected for the Team USA minicamp roster, and has been impressive playing against others such as LeBron James.

Thompson has a beautiful stroke, and at times, has shown us that he’s capable of taking the ball to the basket any day with a dazzling move. If he can continue to work on that, he won’t just be a threat from the perimeter, but he will be able to finish amongst the trees.

3.  Acknowledgement from Superstars:

When he was a rookie in the Team USA camp, he dazzled James, Kobe Bryant, and other players that were there. They tested him with hard activities, and were playing at the top of their game. After they were finished, they came to the conclusion that Thompson wanted to be great, not just good.

If he has that work mentality, which we know he does, he should stay on the Warriors so that they could possibly have better title hopes. He knows his role and should stick to it.

Inconsistency may be a bit hard to deal with, but it goes away with some simple adjustments. With a coach like Mark Jackson, we all know that he can make those adjustments.

4. Defense:

At the beginning of the 2012-2013 NBA season, many may argue that Thompson’s defense was much below average, and again, I tend to agree with that. He wasn’t super at moving his body.

But now, he stays in front of point guards, and just because of his positioning, he is able to get steals and blocks.

Don’t believe me? Just watch one Warrior game and you’ll see that I’m not lying.