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Shooting guard Klay Thompson is a crucial part of a Golden State Warriors team that remains one of the favorites to win the NBA title this season, but there is some buzz he could be traded.

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Scalabrine Discusses Potential Warriors-Celtics Deal

Monday, Nov. 14

Former NBA player and CSNNE Boston Celtics analyst Brian Scalabrine indicated that Thompson may be available via trade, and the Celtics are among the teams interested.

"I heard this weekend that Klay Thompson may be available; I heard that rumor going around involved with a team that wears green," Scalabrine told SiriusXM NBA Radio:



Scalabrine later discussed the rumor with Abby Chin of CSNNE.com, talking about a potential deal that would send Thompson to the Celtics for Jae Crowder, Avery Bradley and the Brooklyn Nets' first-round pick owned by Boston. Golden State would then swap that pick for Nerlens Noel of the Philadelphia 76ers:

Sam Amico of Amico Hoops wrote "the idea of adding defensive-minded players such as Bradley and Crowder is believed to be partially because of the influence of former Cavaliers coach Mike Brown, now an assistant on Steve Kerr’s staff with the Warriors."

However, Sam Amick of USA Today reported the Warriors "are shooting down the notion that there have been any actual talks." Scalabrine also later said "it's not my rumor or my sources. It's just something I read over the week that I thought was interesting."

Nonetheless, it's hard to imagine a deal between the Warriors and Celtics would ever materialize.

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Thompson is arguably the best shooting guard in the NBA. He's a sharpshooter from range who also plays stellar defense, and he has formed an excellent on-court relationship with point guard Stephen Curry. Plus, he's a perfect fit in head coach Steve Kerr's system, as his range stretches defenses and creates incredible spacing for the Warriors on the offensive end.

Despite his struggles to start this season—he's averaging 18.8 points per game but shooting just 31.9 percent from beyond the arc, well below his career average of 41.7 percent—Thompson was a force of nature in both Golden State's 2014-15 title run and last year's campaign that saw the team go 73-9 in the regular season and reach Game 7 of the NBA Finals, eventually falling to the Cleveland Cavaliers.

Most memorably, his 41 points in Game 6 of the Western Conference Finals against the Oklahoma City Thunder—19 of which came in the fourth quarter as the game hung in the balance—saved the Warriors' season.

It's also hard to imagine what the Celtics would offer the Warriors that would be appealing enough for them to move Thompson.

While one could argue the Warriors need more help on the block, this was the organization that reportedly didn't trade Thompson to the Minnesota Timberwolves for Kevin Love in the summer of 2014 at the behest of adviser Jerry West, according to FoxSports.com's Dieter Kurtenbach, even after Love averaged 26.1 points and 12.5 rebounds per game the season before.

The Celtics don't have a player of Love's caliber to offer the Warriors. And Thompson wasn't considered a superstar in the summer of 2014. He most certainly is now.

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