Brandin Podziemski was essentially the reason Klay Thompson ended up leaving Golden State, since the first year took Klay’s starting spot in 2023-24.
In February, Steve Kerr made the decision to bench Klay for the first time since his rookie season in favor of “Podz”.
Thompson took the demotion in his stride, but behind the scenes the benching formed part of his decision to leave the only franchise he’s ever known.
However, there seems to be no bad blood between the two.
At Summer League over the weekend, Podziemski revealed that Thompson called him after leaving Golden State.
“Getting a call from him [Thompson] a couple days ago, and him telling me I’ll always have a brother in him for life is pretty cool,” Podziemski said.
Klay signed with Dallas earlier this month and explained that the decision was based around him getting more minutes and a fresh opportunity to chase a fifth ring.
The five-time All-Star appears to be in good spirits all round about his former team.
Earlier this week, he reacted to a meme comparing the first matchup between the Warriors and Mavericks this season to the movie You Got Served.
He posted the meme on his Instagram story and captioned it, “I’m crying!”
"I'm crying!"
Klay Thompson previews next season’s Warriors-Mavs matchup 😂
(via @KlayThompson / IG)pic.twitter.com/kZZAGz4ZHO
— ClutchPoints (@ClutchPoints) July 20, 2024
As for Podz, he may well have a bright future at the Warriors and under the tutelage of Steph Curry, could become an extremely talented shooter.
Podziemski averaged 9.2 points, 5.8 rebounds and 3.7 assists per contest while shooting 45.4 percent from the field and 38.5 percent from the three-point range in 74 games and 28 starts for the Warriors.
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