Klay Thompson’s greatest NBA regret involves one of his new Mavericks teammates

The hug between Kyrie Irving and Klay Thompson as teammates will be sincere but laced with a life time of regret.

Thompson coming to the Dallas Mavericks as a part of a sign-and-trade is one of the biggest offseason veteran additions this franchise has ever made. For years one of the biggest problems the Mavericks had was their consistent inability to sign Grade A free agents.

After chasing the A they typically landed the B and C types; your Wes Matthews. Chandler Parsons. Monta Ellis. A few others you can’t name, or want to forget.

Thompson choosing the Mavericks over the Los Angeles Lakers means one of the game’s best 3-point shooters preferred to play with Luka Doncic rather than LeBron James.

It also means that Thompson wants to play in the same back court with a player who is the face of the biggest regret of his NBA career.

Thompson recently appeared on that “All The Smoke” podcast hosted by former NBA players Stephen Jackson and Matt Barnes. The pair hosts the show with guests who are NBA players, usually retired, who tell stories from their playing days.

Thompson admitted his biggest regret in his basketball career was when he was cited for possession of marijuana, in 2011 during the final season of his time at Washington State University.

The biggest regret of his NBA career came in the 2016 NBA Finals. The Cavaliers had Kyrie and LeBron, and they trailed the series 3-1 against Klay’s Dynasty Golden State Warriors before coming back to force a Game 7.

Game 7 was tied at 89 with 55 seconds remaining when Kyrie hit what would be the game-winning 3-pointer.

The taller Thompson was initially guarding Irving on the play, and this is where Thompson can’t forgive himself.

“(My biggest regret) was switching that pick and roll with (Warriors) guard Steph (Curry) with (Cavaliers guard J.R. Smith),” Thompson told Barnes and Jackson.

Thompson should have been guarding Kyrie, with Smith covered by Curry. That’s the matchup the Warriors wanted. Instead, after the switch, Curry ended up on Kyrie, who hit the 3-pointer in Curry’s face.

“I still can’t bring myself to watch that footage. It’s too uncomfortable, you know?” Thompson said. “You watch yourself, and I still can’t believe I gave up that switch.

“Now Kyrie’s got one of the greatest shots in NBA history. Steph’s a great defender, too, and I’m like, ‘Man, I can’t believe I conceded that switch.’ It still burns.”

Winning four NBA championships from 2015 to 2022 should help decrease the power of that burn.

One person who is currently feeling a burn is Klay’s dad.

Klay’s father is former Los Angeles Lakers center Mychal Thompson, who is now one of the team’s broadcasters. On Tuesday, Mychal made an appearance on Sirius XM NBA Radio with hosts Frank Isola and Brian Scalabrine.

“I was hoping, hoping, as you can assess, that he would be a Laker,” Mychal said of his son. “It was close, it came down to the Lakers and the Mavs, but the Mavs won out. But you know me, I was hoping and praying he would finish his career with the Lakers.”

Klay Thompson is 34, so there is that chance he could still finish in Los Angeles. He chose the Mavericks because he can walk into a team that’s much closer to winning an NBA title than the Lakers.

The Mavericks had been eyeing Thompson for a while; according to at least one report, Thompson had been eyeing the Mavericks for a while, too.

He is no longer the prime scorer he once was with the Warriors during their prime dynasty years. He still averaged 17.9 points in 77 games last season for a Warriors team that is clearly on the back side of their title years. That was his lowest average since his third year in the league.

He signed a three-year, $50 million deal, and the hope should be for one great season during that contract. The 2024-’25 season should be his best, and then he will slide.

He’s still a good shooter, and with Luka and Kyrie creating space he should have room to make in the area of 40 percent of his 3-point shots.

The one big area the Boston Celtics exposed in their five-game series win over the Mavericks in the NBA Finals was Dallas’ need for better 3-point shooters.

The Mavs traded Tim Hardaway Jr., and Derrick Jones Jr. will sign with the L.A. Clippers as a free agent.

Adding Klay Thompson, even at 34, is an upgrade over both players.

He came here to win another title, even if it means pairing with a player whose presence reminds him of the biggest regret of his NBA career.