Goodbye, Warriors! Under the twinkling lights of tears, Klay Thompson finally uttered the words that broke the hearts of countless fans: "I'm leaving." His voice was choked, but every word was as firm as iron, and it was not only a farewell, but also a heroic turn.
Under the jersey of the Warriors, Klay Thompson left countless glory and memories: the glory of winning the NBA championship ring four times, the glory of five All-Star stars, and countless three-point rain that terrified opponents. In the past ten years, he has used his youth and sweat to push the warriors to the top again and again. But in the final season, he suffered the lowest point of his career, and his performance of 0-of-10 shooting made people see how a once brilliant shooter struggled in the lows.
Having said that, how can such a performance be worthy of an annual salary of more than 40 million? Many fans have bombarded the Internet, and some even say that Clay has changed from the Buddha on the basketball court to a social media meme. However, in the face of doubts and ridicule, Klay chose to remain silent, perhaps he already knew that the last battle of the Warriors was also the beginning of his farewell.
After that game, Clay silently cleaned up in the locker room, his eyes filled with both reluctance and relief. "I've achieved so much here," he said in an interview, "and I won't regret whatever happens in the future." This sentence sounds like a farewell to a veteran, but also a promise for the future.
The Warriors' management is clearly planning for the future, too. They paid the league's highest luxury tax in exchange for a playoff layman, which is clearly hard for them to accept. The Warriors' owner mentioned in an interview over the summer that adjusting the salary structure is a top priority for them. Expensive contracts and inconsistent performances have made Klay and his teammate Paul possible victims.
So why did Klay perform so badly at the end of the season? If you've watched his comeback from injury, you'll understand how injuries can little by little erode the confidence and ability of a top shooter. How many jumps and landings did Clay's knees and Achilles tendons endure? But the basketball gods don't seem to intend to make it easy.
Still, Klay Thompson's warrior heart never changed. He's still the sharpshooter who can score 37 points in one quarter, the G6 Klay who never says die in the playoffs, and the man who once scored 60 points in three quarters. He was confident with every shot, and although he didn't always hit, his fighting spirit never faded.
Even so, Clay has his own confusion and grievances. In his opinion, perhaps the real pain is not the fall from peak to trough, but the fact that after you try your best, you find that you can't catch up with who you once were. This is the brutal truth that every great athlete must face, and it is also the most difficult lesson for them to accept.
Now, Clay has decided to test the waters of the free market, which is both an end and a new beginning. No matter what color his future jersey will be, no matter what field his shoes have stepped on, Klay Thompson's name and the legacy he wrote for the Warriors will forever be etched in basketball history. Goodbye, warriors, and under the new sky, may you still light up that basketball court you love.