NBA Rumors: Warriors Demoting Klay Thompson To Sixth Man Role Next Season? Kevin Durant Replaces Him In GSW Starting Five Lineup

Kevin Durant's transfer to the Golden State Warriors from the Oklahoma City Thunder was considered as a successful endeavor. Durant playing alongside Stephen Curry, Klay Thompson, and Draymond Green contributed to the Warriors' victory in the offseason. Despite this, there are rumors that the team will demote Thompson to the Sixth Man role for the 2016-17 season.

Klay Thompson Willing To Make Sacrifices

In an interview with ESPN, Thompson said he's willing to sacrifice his numbers if it would contribute to the team winning the championships. The 26-year-old said that he wouldn't judge his performance on stats and his priority is for the Warriors to play in the Finals.

"I'm not going to judge my performance off numbers or anything. If we get wins, it really doesn't matter, man," Thompson told ESPN.

Thompson also mentioned that he wants to follow what Manu Ginobili contributed to the San Antonio Spurs. According to Thompson, Ginobili almost always came off the bench during his whole career and never averaged more than 20 points per game, but he managed to be a four-time champion.

How Will Klay Thompson's Gameplay Adjust After Kevin Durant's Arrival?

Durant, who's one of NBA's best shooters along with Thompson and Curry, said he wants all of them to remain faithful to their aesthetics. Durant said the Warriors wants Thompson "to stay Klay" and they "don't want him to change" his game, Yahoo! Sports reported.

Thompson, meanwhile, said sacrificing his starter position is not the Warriors' primary goal. He said the team knew and discussed what they wanted to achieve, and that is to "do something historic," the news outlet further reported.

In a recent interview with USA Today Sports, Thompson only has nice words about Durant's transfer to the Warriors. He said they're still warming up to Durant, but he's proud of the fact that the team now has another "great talent" who's "a pleasure to play with." Thompson said he's still "in awe" of Durant and still gets "kind of starstruck" whenever he's around him.

Kevin Jones of KNBR.com said the Warriors should consider bringing Thompson off the bench alongside Andre Iguodala. The team's second unit next season doesn't boast the same power as last year's group.

But with Thompson and Iguodala in the second unit, the Warriors has a high chance of bringing enough explosion after Curry and Durant's starting power. GM Bob Myers also said that there aren't specifics yet about the changes in the Warriors' lineups and rotations.