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Klay Thompson NBA Draft: John Wall’s Failed Request to Wizards Made Warriors Dynasty Possible

Published 03/13/2024, 1:14 AM EDT

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USA Today via Reuters

What if Klay Thompson didn’t join the Golden State Warriors core in 2011? The NBA world would have probably never seen the Warriors dynasty. The 4x NBA Champion has played a crucial role and helped the Dubs turn into the most successful team of the last decade. But, it would have never been the same if at all the former Washington Wizards star John Wall made his dream request work in 2o10.

Sitting alongside Udonis Haslem and Mike Miller in the latest episode of The OGs, Wall opened up about his failed attempt. The 2010 #1 draft pick said, “I think we should have took Klay. For sure, took Klay… A sharp shooter knowing he can shoot the ball like that,” when Miller reminded him of his attempt to rope in the Dubs star.

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John Wall further went on to talk about the workout that Klay Thompson and he took part in together before their rookie season. Notably, Thompson came into the league a season after the ex-Wizards star made his debut. Speaking of Thompson’s talent, Wall said, “He was fire, bro! I knew Klay was special. He could shoot it and we would have got him the year before. That was 2011.” 

After spending three good years at Washington State, Thompson worked his way to the 11th pick of the 2011 draft and the Warriors took him home. And the rest is history. However, Wall didn’t seem to let go of the topic. He further went on to describe the value that China Klay could have added to the Wizards in the early 2010s.

Wall even came up with a team that he felt could have turned things around for The District. The team had Klay, Wall, Bradley Beal, Nene and Marcin Gortat.

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While the ex-Wizards star opened up about his team’s missed opportunity, the Dubs also could have missed their star because of the LA Lakers. Let’s take a brief look at the Lakers’ rejection.

The Lakers rejected Klay Thompson

John Wall mentioned that Thompson could have entered the league a year before his rookie season. He didn’t because the Lakers declined, as per a 2014 report from The NBC Sports. 

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The report suggested that the Lakers promised to rope in Klay into their fold. Unfortunately, it didn’t have any first-round pick in the 2010 draft, as they used it to trade for Pau Gasol in 2007. However, the report stated that the Lakers refused to make a trade to get a first-round pick and Kobe Bryant also had an entrenchment with the shooting guard.

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What do you make of the failed attempts to rope in Klay Thompson? Let us know in the comments.

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Written by:

Shahul Hameed

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Shahul Hameed is a Senior NBA Writer at EssentiallySports. Armed with a Master's Degree in journalism from a distinguished institute, his journey into sports writing began during his college days, and since then, Shahul has been captivated not only by the remarkable consistency of Stephen Curry but also by the enduring legacy of LeBron James. He specializes in covering the live basketball action.
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Edited by:

Sameen Nawathe