Being a five-time All-Star and four-time winner, Klay Thompson feels that he will have plenty of time to improve on his relative troubles this season.

When asked about head coach Steve Kerr’s patience with the starting lineup, he responded somewhat dismissively, asking, “What, do you want them to bench me?”

“These things, like patience and time to discover who you are, are sometimes earned. In my opinion, history is on our side in that regard. Who says what doesn’t matter to me? They are not able to do what we do, nor do they do what we do. They converse because of this.

After all, since the Warriors selected him with a first-round pick in the 2011 draft, he has helped the team win four titles and make it to the NBA Finals twice more. He is a franchise icon. He is among the greatest three-point shooters of all time and has a strong history of doing well with Draymond Green and Stephen Curry.

Nevertheless, he is 33 years old, and due to injuries, he missed the 2019–20 and 2020–21 seasons before appearing in just 32 games in 2021–22. Despite shooting 40.2 percent from the field and 36.7 percent from beyond the arc, he is averaging 15 points per game and isn’t the same performer he was in his prime.

If nothing changes, the shooting totals would be the lowest of his career, and the scoring average is the lowest since he was a rookie.

Although Thompson didn’t appear to believe that coming off the bench would help Golden State achieve some stability, the team is now just 8-9 on the year.