Three Klay Thompson Trade Destinations

The Golden State Warriors are in a death spiral and it is quickly becoming apparent there's only one way to pull out of it. After getting blown out by the New Orleans Pelicans at home on Wednesday night, Shams Charania reports the Warriors are looking to get active on the trade market and there's only one player who won't be moved under any circumstances-- Stephen Curry. Otherwise, everyone is available.

It's pretty nuts to think about in the big picture but in the short view this was the inevitable end-point, especially given Steve Kerr and Curry's comments after last night's loss. Kerr said the team lacked "confidence" and Curry said they can't keep trying the same thing over and over again and expect to win. When the franchise's two faces are talking about the roster like that, change is around the corner.

Draymond Green is damaged goods as it stands and almost certainly won't be moved. The Warriors won't move Moses Moody or Jonathan Kuminga or really any of their young guys unless they get a guaranteed star in exchange, which feels somewhat unlikely. Which leaves Klay Thompson and Andrew Wiggins as the most likely trade chips, especially since their large salaries will be key to matching any swing at a bigger name. And since words cannot truly describe how bad Wiggins has been this year (11.7 points per game on 41.8 shooting from the floor), that leaves Thompson.

The multi-time All-Star has not been anywhere near his best self this season, and it is fair to assume he'll never get back there, either. In 36 games this year Thompson has averaged 17.1 points per game while shooting 42.8 percent from the floor. He is still decent from beyond the arc, sinking 3.2 threes per contest on 8.4 attempts per game, but the biggest problem lays beyond the stat sheet-- Thompson still thinks he's that guy and acts like it. He'll shoot the Warriors out of the game because he thinks he can get hot if he keeps chucking. But he can't. Not anymore. That makes him a huge minus on the floor and his fading defense doesn't help matters, either.

Despite all this there are many teams out there who would be happy to bank on Thompson reverting back to an effective, if overpaid, basketball player with championship experience to disseminate after a change in scenery. Here are a few possible trade destinations for Thompson and his $43 million salary.

Miami Heat

Welcome to Pat Riley's home for washed-up superstars, Klay Thompson! The Heat have the best chance of any franchise of turning Thompson's current trajectory around. They could get him to buy into Heat Culture and their conditioning program could only help as Thompson attempts to recover some of the athleticism he lost following his ACL and Achilles injuries. This sort of acquisition fits Miami's MO from the last few years and they have the contracts to make it work; sending out Kyle Lowry and Duncan Robinson in exchange for Thompson and Cory Joseph makes the money work.

If he clicks, then Thompson is better than Robinson and the Warriors get another sniper to take the heat off Curry along with a backup point guard to help out until Chris Paul returns. The Heat would have to get desperate to do this but it is possible.

Chicago Bulls

This feels like a slightly stronger possibility. The Bulls want to get rid of Zach LaVine but don't want to tank. LaVine is pretty much the only player on the trade market with a contract like Thompson's, so they make for natural trade partners. The Warriors would obviously love to do this deal; LaVine has his issues and is wildly overpaid but isn't on the wrong side of 30 like Thompson and, at this point, is a more reliable scorer. Getting him into Kerr's system might be exactly what he needs.

On Chicago's end, they get rid of LaVine and would take all the picks the Warriors could give. They could also convince Golden State to give up Moody in this scenario so they get a young talent in return. LaVine for Thompson and Moody works money-wise; throw in a pair of firsts from the Warriors and that's a deal both sides could be happy with.

Detroit Pistons

The Pistons are incredibly desperate for an injection of talent as we near the NBA trade deadline, especially with Cade Cunningham on the shelf for a while. They also have a weird hodgepodge of mid-level contracts that can be cobbled together to match Thompson's deal. Would Thompson turn the franchise around? Of course not. Would he take well to the idea that he's getting traded by the most successful organization of the last decade to arguably the worst team in NBA history? Almost definitely not. But Detroit is desperate enough to try to make it happen and thus we should consider it.

Maybe the Pistons send out Jaden Ivey (who has been in and out of Monty Williams' rotation) along with Joe Harris, Marvin Bagley, and Alec Burks in exchange for Thompson and Kevon Looney. The Dubs get another youthful talent and a pair of okay rotation guys to go with an expendable contract. The Pistons get their veteran reinforcements. Nobody is happy, which makes it a realistic trade.