Klay Thompson is expected to sign with the Miami Heat after reaching a contract buyout with the Dallas Mavericks, multiple reports say, ending a turbulent two-season stint in Texas and setting up a new chapter alongside Giannis Antetokounmpo and Bam Adebayo on South Beach. The 36-year-old sharpshooter still must clear a mandatory waiting period before he can officially put pen to paper with Miami.
According to WPLG Local 10, Thompson played 141 games for Dallas across two seasons, starting 80 of them while averaging 12.9 points per game and shooting 38.7% from three-point range. The Mavericks had reportedly sought a trade involving Thompson before the sides ultimately agreed to part ways through the buyout. Under NBA collective bargaining rules, per Hoops Rumors, a bought-out player must clear a mandatory 48-hour waiver period before becoming an unrestricted free agent, and any rival team that placed a waiver claim during that window would have to absorb Thompson's full remaining $17.5 million salary for the 2026-27 season.
Thompson's tenure in Dallas never resembled the championship pairing the Mavericks envisioned when he signed his three-year, $50 million deal in July 2024 to play alongside Luka Doncic. Franchise turmoil followed almost immediately, with Doncic traded to the Lakers during the 2024-25 season and Kyrie Irving suffering a season-ending ACL injury in March, according to the same account. Dallas had also been carrying 16 standard contracts, one above the NBA's 15-man regular-season roster limit, while sitting only about $2.2 million beneath the luxury tax threshold, a roster crunch that made moving on from Thompson's salary a practical necessity.
A Career Built on Historic Shooting
Thompson enters this next chapter as one of the most prolific shooters the league has ever seen. He ranks fourth on the NBA's all-time three-point field goals made list with 2,899 career threes, having passed Damian Lillard in January, and is one of only two players in league history to record 200 or more three-pointers in 10 separate seasons. The Golden State Warriors selected Thompson 11th overall, and he spent 13 seasons in the Bay Area, winning four NBA championships and earning five All-Star selections before entering the NBA in 2011.
Following the buyout agreement, Mavericks President of Basketball Operations Masai Ujiri praised Thompson in comments carried by NBC Sports, calling him “one of the great players and competitors of his generation” as Dallas turns its attention toward building around 2025 top draft choice Cooper Flagg. The comment underscored how the Mavericks' priorities have shifted decisively toward youth even as they honored Thompson's résumé on the way out.
Why Miami Waited All Summer
Miami's pursuit of Thompson was no accident. Heat President Pat Riley had publicly identified perimeter shooting as the franchise's paramount offseason necessity, aiming to maximize half-court floor spacing around interior All-Stars Antetokounmpo and Adebayo, as reported by Heavy Sports. The Heat's need for a movement shooter has been building since the team chased LeBron rumors earlier this summer while navigating the cap fallout from the Antetokounmpo trade.
That trade, which brought Antetokounmpo and Bobby Portis to Miami from the Milwaukee Bucks, hard-capped the franchise at the NBA's $178.1 million first apron. The Heat entered late August roughly $10.6 million below that hard cap with three open roster spots, the same report notes. Miami had reportedly preserved about $8 million of its mid-level exception throughout the summer specifically to target Thompson if he reached a buyout, letting the Heat offer a financial package superior to rivals limited to veteran minimum contracts.
Ripple Effects Across Free Agency
Miami's commitment to Thompson as its top perimeter target reportedly sent ripples through the rest of Eastern Conference free agency. Veteran swingman DeMar DeRozan turned his attention toward potential deals with the Denver Nuggets and Cleveland Cavaliers once it became clear Thompson was Miami's man, per the same Heavy Sports account. It's one more sign of how a single buyout decision reshaped roster plans across the league this month.
Once Thompson clears waivers, the exact structure of his new deal remains an open question. If he signs a 10-plus year veteran minimum contract worth approximately $3.9 million, Miami would retain two open roster spots and maintain more than $6 million in flexibility below its first apron hard-cap ceiling, the same reporting indicates. Alternatively, a deal using a chunk of Miami's preserved mid-level exception would eat further into that cushion, though the final terms have not yet been finalized publicly.
Fitting Into Miami's Roster
Thompson would join a Heat backcourt and wing rotation that already includes Tim Hardaway Jr., who was previously acquired by Miami, giving coach Erik Spoelstra another proven veteran shooter to deploy alongside Antetokounmpo and Adebayo. Local 10, which describes itself as the home of Heat basketball across South Florida, will air at least 68 Heat games this season as part of a newly expanded media rights agreement between WPLG Local 10 and the team. Fans looking to purchase 2026-2027 season tickets can call 786-777-4375 for more information.
For now, the basketball world waits on the formal announcement. Multiple reports agree Thompson is expected to join the Heat, but until he officially clears waivers, the four-time champion technically remains a free agent in limbo between two very different chapters of his career.
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