For Warriors’ Klay Thompson, time with dog is time well spent

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The Warriors were crossing t’s and dotting i’s on Klay Thompson’s $70 million contract extension last month when the 24-year-old hit general manager Bob Myers with a peculiar question.

Thompson wanted to know how much longer the proceedings might take.

“We were trying to get the contract signed, and all he wanted to do was go home to his dog,” Myers said.

To truly know the Warriors’ newly minted shooting guard — the one many believe might be the league’s best two-way player at his position — you first have to know his beloved English bulldog, Rocco.

As has long been the case, Thompson spends the bulk of his time in the gym. It’s one of the reasons he has improved in each of his first four seasons in the NBA and went from being a defensive liability to one of the league’s best perimeter defenders.

But when he’s not working on his game, Thompson usually can be found with his dog — curled up together watching basketball on TV or playing seemingly choreographed games of fetch while taking carefree walks through the Cesar Chavez dog park in Berkeley.

Of course, when Thompson signed an extension that would allow him to fill that entire park with dog biscuits, Rocco was the first to know.

Golden State Warriors' Klay Thompson and his dog, Rocco, at Cesar Chavez Park in Berkeley, Calif., on Wednesday, November 19, 2014. Golden State Warriors' Klay Thompson and his dog, Rocco, at Cesar Chavez Park in Berkeley, Calif., on Wednesday, November 19, 2014. Photo: Scott Strazzante, The Chronicle Buy photo Photo: Scott Strazzante, The Chronicle Image 1 of / 19 Caption Close For Warriors’ Klay Thompson, time with dog is time well spent 1 / 19 Back to Gallery

“He didn’t know what it meant,” Thompson said. “That’s why I love him, though. He didn’t care the day before I signed the contract or the day of. He just loved me for me.”

It’s not as though Thompson would spend his money that haphazardly, anyway. During his rookie season, he was still driving the car his family passed down to him in high school, and he made fun of fellow rookie Jeremy Tyler for driving a Ferrari.

When asked what his first extravagant purchase would be after signing the new contract, Thompson hesitated for a while before finally saying he’d love to have a fishing boat — someday, way down the line.

Thompson got Rocco about 3½ years ago when the bulldog was 8 weeks old. Thompson named and trained the puppy, and fed and cared for him as he matured to his full-grown size of 50 pounds.

When Thompson was younger, he had a yellow lab, but that was the family dog. Rocco is Thompson’s baby.

“You make it sound like he’s my son,” Thompson said during a recent walk through the park. “Yeah, I guess he is my son.”

On that overcast day, Thompson and Rocco took the same path they’ve taken almost every day Thompson has been home for the past 1,000-plus days. It doesn’t seem to matter who leads at this point.

Thompson knows where they’re going. Rocco knows, too.

If one briefly strays, the other stops after about 5 feet and silently waits for the other.

They’re best friends.

“This gives me a chance to clear my mind of everything or a chance to think about life — anything but basketball,” Thompson said. “With me, my friends or my family, I can’t help but talk about basketball, so this is my escape.”

Other than to his family and friends, Thompson didn’t talk to many people during his first two seasons in the NBA. It was equal parts reverence for the league and its experienced players and him being a bit of a loner.

“I can just judge Klay by what I know of him and by what people don’t see,” Lakers guard Kobe Bryant said before describing a behind-the-scenes moment in China two summers ago. “I went in to lift weights late at night and was in there by myself — at least I thought I was. He was over there in the corner lifting weights, too. I judge a player by that type of stuff.”

'He’s really grown up’

Former Warriors assistant coach and current Sacramento head coach Michael Malone said, “Klay, in his first few years, barely said a word. The longest conversation I’ve ever had with Klay was this summer in Bilbao, Spain. He’s really grown up. He’s matured. ... How can you not root for a player like that?”

Rocco doesn’t make Thompson say anything. The occasional pat on the head or toss of the stick does the trick.

Thompson has tried different balls, boomerangs, Frisbees and even skateboards, but they all end up being chewed up by Rocco. Now, they simply go to the park, find a stick and start the rhythmic game of fetch.

When they reach the peak of the park, Rocco plays with a stick — happy he doesn’t have to return it for at least a couple of minutes — as Thompson takes note of a sculpture and his surroundings.

Thompson admits that he still doesn’t understand the Chinese Meridian Clock that sits at the center of a circular boundary engraved with the words “tolerance,” “determination,” “hope” and “courage” — but he certainly comprehends those nouns.

He tolerated sitting behind Monta Ellis for most of his rookie season and then replaced the fan favorite without much of a hiccup after Ellis was traded to Milwaukee. One of the game’s best three-point shooters, Thompson had the determination to improve his dribble-penetration game after fans dubbed his often-missed shot attempts at the rim “Klayups” during his first two seasons.

Hope and courage

He has undeniable hope, believing that he has worked his way from being the No. 11 pick in the 2011 draft to the

No. 1 player at his position in the NBA. And he has the courage to want the ball in late-game situations without sweating the consequences.

“This is what Klay has become: He’s not just a jump-shooter, but a guy who can get into the paint and use his size and strength,” Warriors head coach Steve Kerr said. “You can just tell the confidence that he has. ... Klay, I think, has the potential to be kind of that prototypical go-to guy.”

None of that crossed Thompson’s mind as he took one more look around from the park’s peak. “This is why I love coming out here: You get outside, get fresh air, and you can see everything. There’s the city, Marin, Richmond, Oakland, Berkeley. It’s beautiful.”

It’s always beautiful. The overcast days remind Thompson of Portland and the sunny days remind him of Southern California — the two places in which he split his childhood.

Thompson wants to be in Oakland. He didn’t want to be traded to Minnesota when his name surfaced in rumors regarding a deal for Kevin Love this offseason, and he now is signed with the Warriors through the planned opening of the their San Francisco arena in 2018.

“When your name comes up in a trade for a Hall of Fame player like Kevin Love, that’s actually a compliment,” said Thompson’s father, Mychal. “He had to understand that is part of business, accept it and make the most of it. He was prepared for it to go either way, but he’s extremely happy that he gets to stay.”

Fun and games

Thompson finally pulled the stick from Rocco and tossed it a good 50 yards to indicate that the walk needed to continue. As Thompson walked to the waterfront to wash his hands, Rocco was told to stay put.

The dog could hardly wait, but he knew what he was supposed to do. So, he propped his front paws on a rock and watched every move Thompson made — just in case his world-class athlete/owner took an unlikely slip on the slick rocks.

“You can’t swim,” Thompson said. “What are you going to do?”

Thompson jokes with Rocco, but he also offers consistent praise and affection for every returned stick or just about anything else. Thompson even explains to his dog that he was late for this day’s walk because of a mandatory “basketball awareness” meeting at the team’s practice facility.

On the closing stretch of the more-than-a-mile walk, Thompson mentions that Rocco has “good bounce” and is “pretty fast” for having such short legs. Then, Thompson remembers that San Antonio and Cleveland are playing on this night, and as he checks his phone to see the score, it’s clear that he has shifted back into basketball mode.

With Rocco still by his side.

Rusty Simmons is a San Francisco Chronicle staff writer. E-mail: rsimmons@sfchronicle.com Twitter: @Rusty_SFChron

On the rise

Klay Thompson’s per-game averages during his four-year career:

Stat 2011-12 2012-13 2013-14 2014-15 Points 12.5 16.6 18.4 20.9 Rebounds 2.4 3.7 3.1 3.6 Assists 2.0 2.2 2.2 3.2 Steals 0.7 1.0 0.9 1.3 FG pct 44.3 42.2 44.4 44.4 3-pt FG pct 41.4 40.1 41.7 44.6 Minutes 24.4 35.8 35.4 32.9

Tuesday’s game

Who: Magic (7-12) vs.

Warriors (14-2)

When: 7:30 p.m.

Where: Oracle Arena

TV/Radio: CSNBA/680

Of note: The Warriors have a three-game winning streak against Orlando, but the Magic have won seven of their past 10 games at Oracle Arena. ... The Warriors are 6-0 against Eastern Conference teams, winning by an average of 13.5 points. ... The Warriors lead the league with 11 victories by double-digit margins, including a 111-96 victory over Orlando on Wednesday. ... The Magic snapped a four-game losing skid Sunday in Phoenix.

— Rusty Simmons