TORONTO — The interview was delayed by an equipment hiccup. With Klay Thompson’s media schedule packed and every minute accounted for, the NBA rep barked at the cameraman that his time would be cut short. He barked back about not starting his clock.
Meanwhile, Thompson picked up a basketball on the set. He started dribbling, working on his crossover against an imaginary defender. Every few seconds, he would rise up and shoot, the thump of the ball off the wall filling the meeting room. Unfazed by the inconvenience. Untouched by the minor tension.
It was a perfect picture of Thompson, the Warriors’ two-time All-Star guard. Unfazed to the point he seems aloof. Unconcerned to the extent of appearing indifferent.
“That was always Klay’s personality,” said Indiana Pacers forward Paul George, who played AAU ball with Thompson. “He comes in, gets his work done. He doesn’t need praise and glory. You just know what you’re going to get from him. That’s what you love about Klay.”
This is one of the secret weapons of the Warriors’ chemistry: Thompson’s personality.
How does Stephen Curry flourish into one of the biggest stars on the planet without it producing envy in the Warriors’ ranks? Same with Draymond Green’s meteoric rise.
A big reason is Thompson. The Warriors’ low-maintenance star, a gym rat still breaking in his superstar sneakers, sets a tone for the Warriors that serves as an invisible fertilizer.
Once part of a rising duo dubbed the Splash Brothers, Thompson is now undeniably the Kelly Rowland to Curry’s Beyoncé.
Green, making his first All-Star appearance, has surpassed Thompson in status and recognition. Green’s big personality and ever-improving game are turning him into a coveted pitchman, getting deals with Beats by Dre and Foot Locker.
And this is happening while Thompson is on pace for career highs in field goal percentage and 3-pointers made, while back to defending point guards more often.
Yet Thompson doesn’t care about that. At all.
“Why would I be mad at my teammates’ success?” Thompson said, dismissing the premise. “First off, I can’t do what Steph can do. Plus, I wouldn’t be where I am without Steph, without Draymond, without my teammates. It’s all about the team. Their success is my success.”
This is much less a conscious effort by Thompson than a way of life. The flame doesn’t attract this moth as it does most others. He’s just getting comfortable in this position as an NBA star. He probably still doesn’t fully grasp his status and the spoils that could come with it.
His demeanor gives Curry an invitation to be unabashed, which matters for a guy who dealt with tension from his last backcourt mate.
Thompson’s nonchalance is a license for Green to be himself without having to navigate Thompson’s feelings.
His focus on the team helps foster an unwritten code that prevents the bickering and beef from taking over the locker room.
“He has a good enough sense of humor to joke around,” Green said, “But he stays in his lane and does his thing. Sometimes, especially now that more people may say something about me, it may seem like it’s taking away from him. But Klay doesn’t care. None of us do. That’s why we’re as good as we are. So it makes a huge difference that Klay is that way.”
When Thompson was notified he made the All-Star team, he wasn’t eagerly waiting by a phone, repeatedly checking to make sure it was working. He wasn’t glued to the TV for the announcement.
Thompson was in the park walking his dog, Rocco.
Another live illustration of Thompson’s low-frills ways came during the media circuit.
Curry’s entourage included the head of Warriors PR, the manager from his agency representation and the head of Warriors security. Plus a quartet of media followed him around.
Green followed Curry. He had a representative from his agency, the head of Warriors PR, the other half of the Warriors’ two-man security team and his personal manager.
Klay Thompson’s entourage: the third on the Warriors’ PR totem pole and a freelance security person the team hired.
“And that’s why it works,” Warriors general manager Bob Myers said. “Maybe Klay is smarter than us all.” Don’t get it wrong: Thompson has come to like the recognition. But not because it comes with shoe deals and VIP access and fanfare. He likes it mostly because of what it says about his career.
Thompson didn’t have nearly as many people at his podium as Curry and Green. But Thompson answered every question with a smile and then went and became a member of the media.
“Klay wants you to pass him the ball every time,” Thompson said, speaking in third person while pointing his phone toward Green as if it were a mic. “You’re going to do that for him?”
Green responded by pledging to feed Thompson.
“I used to drag my feet on this stuff,” Thompson said on his way to another interview. “But I’ve learned this is all part of it. If you are a great player, this comes with the territory. You’ve got to embrace it.”
Read Marcus Thompson II’s blog at blogs.mercurynews.com/thompson. Contact him at mthomps2@bayareanewsgroup.com. Follow him on Twitter at twitter.com/ThompsonScribe.
