With NBA free agency looming, Klay Thompson is gearing up for a potential Olympic run.
Thompson will head to Houston this week for training camp with the Bahamian National team, The Athletic's Shams Charania and Anthony Slater reported Monday, citing sources. Thompson’s father Mychal was born in the Bahamas and the younger Thompson previously had said that he would love to represent the country on the international stage.
Thompson won a gold medal with Team USA at the Rio 2016 Summer Olympics, but he was not selected to represent the United States at the upcoming Paris Olympics.
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Given the hurdles Thompson would need to overcome to represent the Bahamas, it’s unlikely that he will get approval in time for the Olympic qualifying tournament on July 2.
He would need to get an official release from USA Basketball as well as approval from FIBA to switch nationalities in addition to having Bahamian citizenship. While the Bahamas has Jus sanguinis citizenship, it is unclear if Thompson has completed all the necessary steps to obtain a national passport.
With NBA free agency just a few weeks away, the longtime Warriors guard reportedly is weighing all options available to him. It still is uncertain at this point if Golden State and Thompson will be able to reach an agreement on a new contract, though the Warriors have signaled their intention to keep the core of Thompson, Draymond Green and Steph Curry together.
Olympic rosters would need to be set well before the start of the Paris games on July 26, so it would be a long shot for Thompson to suit up in the gold and aquamarine of the Bahamas, even if the team were to qualify.
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