Klay Thompson is on a mission to 'prove people wrong' about age-old concern

The wait is finally over for Dallas Mavericks fans.

Klay Thompson has officially made his debut as a Maverick after playing nearly 800 regular season games for the Golden State Warriors, and he flashed the potential of how deadly he can be quickly after overcoming a couple of misses in the first quarter.

Thompson finished with 10 points while shooting 3-5 from downtown in his Mavs debut, but his 3-point shooting isn't the only part of his game that stood out. He was excellent on the defensive end of the floor as well, and he delivered a fiery statement about his potential on that end of the floor when asked about it in the postgame press conference.

Thompson is determined to prove his defensive expertise hasn't faded

"I still want to get rid of that notion that I’m not the same defender as I once was," Thompson stated. "I truly believe I am, and I’m excited to prove people wrong that I can still guard the elite players in this league."

Thompson heard all of the chatter all offseason long about how he's a poor defender, and he's ready to put an end to it. He put on a great defensive performance in his first game with the Mavericks, and he is committed to being a stopper and guarding some of the league's best players.

Jason Kidd also liked what Thompson brought on the defensive end, and harped on the "pride" that he takes in playing good defense. Kidd stated that Thompson is going to "guard everybody" this season and still referred to him as a "two-way player."

The knocks on Thompson's defense went as far as to suggest that he shouldn't be starting over the offseason, and he enters the 2024-25 season with motivation to show that he is still a plus defender. Thompson's new teammate Brandon Williams came to the defense of his defense during Media Day as he complimented his lateral quickness, and that actually turned out to be true in his debut against the Utah Jazz.

Thompson guarded well multiple feet beyond the 3-point line and defended a variety of players. He went from defending players like Jordan Clarkson and Keyonte George to even guarding Lauri Markkanen, and he showed off his versatility right away.

Thompson seemed excited about the opportunity to show off his defensive skills in Dallas, and he talked about how it'll benefit him to share the offensive load with Luka Doncic and Kyrie Irving as they'll take some weight off his shoulders. He was the No. 2 guy in Golden State behind Stephen Curry, and playing in Dallas will allow him to step back and become a third option.

Doncic and Irving's on-ball gravity is going to create tons of open looks for Thompson, and Thompson's off-ball movement combined with his excellent feel for the game is going to form a tremendous big three alongside those two.

Having Doncic and Irving carry this heavy offensive load should give Thompson some more energy to give on the defensive end, and he is locked in on returning to elite form on that end. He wants to show the world that he hasn't lost a step on that end, and Thursday night was a big step in the right direction in that aspect.