Report: Warriors Take Klay Thompson Off the Table in Trade Negotiations

The Golden State Warriors had been rumored to be willing to include star shooting guard Klay Thompson in any potential deal for Minnesota Timberwolves All-Star Kevin Love. Considering that Thompson is by far the second-most valuable commodity on the Warriors roster behind Stephen Curry, this made a lot of sense. 

Unfortunately for fans in Northern California who had hoped Love would make his way to the Warriors, this doesn’t seem to be the case anymore.

This report from the ESPN insider was then backed up by respected Warriors columnist Marcus Thompson of the Bay Area News Group.

If the Warriors are unwilling to part ways with Thompson in any potential Love deal, it’s highly unlikely that they will be able to land the All-Star power forward. The thinking internally in Golden State is a package that includes David Lee, Harrison Barnes and a 2015 first-round pick.

In addition to that likely not being enough to finalize a deal with Minnesota, the Warriors cannot trade that first-round pick until after the draft on Thursday.

This could all be a smokescreen from the Warriors, but the indication is that advisor Jerry West and new head coach Steve Kerr are against including Thompson in any deal. And for good measure. Curry and Thompson racked up the most three-pointers in the NBA last season and both shot over 40 percent from behind the arc. The idea of splitting them up has been somewhat of a contentious issue within the organization.

With that said, a team that is on the cusp of contending for a championship has to make some difficult decisions. Golden State needs to ask itself the following question. Is it better off with Curry and Love or Curry and Thompson? In the end, that will tell us whether they end up offering the latter in a deal when the offseason really starts to heat up.

[polldaddy poll=8142486]

Photo: The Whistle