It moved fast once it started. Dallas and Klay Thompson agreed to a buyout Friday afternoon, and within minutes the reporting had already jumped past the paperwork to where he was landing next.
Dallas Mavericks announce they have reached a buyout agreement with sharpshooter Klay Thompson, making him an unrestricted free agent.
Chris Haynes had the buyout first, and Shams Charania followed with the destination: Thompson is expected to sign with the Heat once he clears waivers. Haynes summed up the basketball logic in one line — Giannis Antetokounmpo gets another marksman.
The backstory matters here. Thompson was 36 years old and owed $17.5 million in the final year of a three-year, $50 million deal he signed with Dallas in the summer of 2024, following the Mavericks' blockbuster Luka Doncic trade. It never quite worked — Dallas went 26-56 last season — and per Charania, Thompson made it clear to the Mavericks that he wanted out to chase a contender. Over his two seasons in Dallas he averaged 12.9 points a game and shot 38.7% from three, respectable numbers but a long way from the Splash Brother who once torched playoff fields with Golden State.
Miami had been circling since the Heat pulled off their own blockbuster for Antetokounmpo, and according to Charania they made Thompson their top free agent priority this summer, waiting nearly two months on his release to make it happen. The fit is obvious on paper: a four-time champion and career 38%-plus three-point shooter slotting in around two of the league's most dominant interior players in Giannis and Bam Adebayo, who both need shooters spacing the floor around them.
Klay Thompson plans to sign a two-year, nearly $13 million deal with the Miami Heat after clearing waivers, with a player option in the second season, sources tell ESPN.
The money is modest by Thompson's standards — Shams reported the deal at two years and nearly $13 million, with a player option in year two — but this was never going to be about maximizing dollars. Bobby Marks laid out why the mechanics worked: Thompson was on an expiring $17.5 million deal and ineligible to sign with teams above the aprons, the waiver got Dallas down to 15 standard contracts, and Miami had 3 open roster spots and $10.6 million of room below the first apron before he arrived.
There's a nostalgia angle too. Thompson reunites with Andrew Wiggins, his old Golden State championship running mate, giving Miami a projected starting five of Davion Mitchell, Thompson, Wiggins, Antetokounmpo and Adebayo. Fans on Polymarket clearly like the math — Miami's playoff odds jumped to 71% with the addition.
Klay working out in Miami immediately after signing with the Heat 🔥 (via @BBallAnalytics) https://t.co/wTgRN7m0l8
None of this erases the noise Thompson's been fielding all offseason about where his career stacks up historically — he was still sparring with fans on Instagram over Ray Allen comparisons the same day the buyout news broke. But actions speak louder than IG comments, and Thompson chasing a fifth ring in South Beach is a much bigger story than a comment-section beef. The real test starts whenever Miami tips off.