Inside Klay Thompson's Mavericks Debut and Motivation to 'Prove People Wrong'

Klay Thompson reflects on his Mavericks debut, discussing nerves, building chemistry with teammates, and his determination to prove doubters wrong in this new chapter of his career.

Photo via Rashad Miller

DALLAS — After months of anticipation, Klay Thompson made his long-awaited debut with the Dallas Mavericks in a 107-102 preseason loss to the Utah Jazz on Thursday night. Thompson finished with 10 points and 3 assists, shooting 3-of-9 (33.3%) from the field, 3-of-5 (60.0%) from deep, and 1-of-2 (50.0%) on free throws.

As excited as the American Airlines Center crowd was to see Thompson play for the Mavericks, he was just as nervous. The plan was for him and Kyrie Irving to play only in the first half for roughly 15-18 minutes. While it was just a preseason game, Thompson admitted he was nervous for the four previous days—likening the feeling to when he was set to play the first NBA Finals game of his career in 2015. This wasn’t surprising, as Thompson compared his first training camp outside of Golden State to “transferring schools.”

“I was nervous for like four days,” Thompson admitted after the game. “I haven’t been that nervous, I don’t think, since Game 1 of the 2015 Finals. It felt so good just to get out there and play and work those jitters out. It was a new experience, and it’s a natural feeling when you’ve been somewhere so long to be somewhere new in a new environment. To finally put the uniform on, it felt amazing.”

Wearing No. 31, a tribute to Hall of Fame shooter Reggie Miller, Thompson got off to a slow start, missing his first few shots. But by the second quarter, he found his rhythm. His first points came late in the first quarter after a double wide pin-down didn’t result in a clean look, so he passed to Naji Marshall for a Get action. Marshall's drive led to a trip to the free throw line, created by a shot fake that fooled the defender.