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USA Today via Reuters

USA Today via Reuters

The Golden State Warriors have been one of the most dominant teams in the NBA in the past decade. Led by Stephen Curry and Klay Thompson, they have won four NBA championships and have set numerous records. While Steph is the highest-paid player on the team. His teammate Klay Thompson is lurking right behind him. Thompson’s contributions to the Warriors’ success cannot be denied, but his salary has also made him one of the most overpaid in NBA history.

Klay’s Career Earnings make him the second richest in the franchise 

According to HoopsHype, he is the second highest-paid player in Warriors’s history, with total earnings of $226,333,321. This puts him behind only Steph, who has earned $305,929,066 with the Warriors. 

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2015-16 was arguably his best season ever when he was part of the 73-9 Warriors squad. He further proved his worth by making several NBA records, including 14 three-pointers in a single game. Apart from this, he also holds the record for most three-pointers in a single season. Among his other several records, there is one more from Game 6 of the 2016 Western Conference Finals. Klay made 11 consecutive three-pointers, which is an NBA playoff record. 

READ MORE: Klay Thompson Takes on 21YO Future Star as Stephen Curry and Co Starts Preparation for 2023-24

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However, his individual contributions to the Warriors have declined. In 2017-18, he averaged 22.3 points per game and shot 41.4% from the three-point range. In his 2021-22, he only averaged 19.5 points per game and shot 38.0% from the three-point range. Despite this decline, he remained a valuable member of the Warriors. In his next 2022-23 season, he took his highest salary of $40,600,080. This also made him the 11th highest-paid player in the NBA that season.

Thompson’s Future with the Warriors

Despite setting several records and being a consistent player for the Warriors, he is an overpaid athlete. Just this past season, his real value had him worth $8.7 million while he actually earned $30.1 million for a $21.3 million overpay. That makes it around an overpaid difference of $96,062,2751. This means that the Warriors are essentially paying Thompson $19 million per year for his name and reputation, rather than his on-court performance. 

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The Warriors have opted not to sign Thompson to an extension in this offseason. That means he will enter unrestricted free agency next year. Only time will tell what more is left of him with the Warriors.

Watch This Story: After Thrashing Greece in FIBA World Cup, Stephen Curry’s coach heaps praise on $80,900,000 rich NBA star for team’s success: “he gets the 30-70 balls…”