Klay Thompson's unexpected new role will stun Mavericks fans in the best way possible

The NBA season is still over a month away, but Dallas Mavericks shooting guard Klay Thompson is already doing whatever he can to excel in his new role of being one of the team's leaders.

Earlier this summer, Thompson made it clear that he wants to step up as a vocal leader, and this is something that he never had to do over his 13 years as a member of the Golden State Warriors. Players like Stephen Curry, Draymond Green, and Andre Iguodala were the leaders of the team, and while Thompson was still considered a leader, he wasn't a vocal leader.

Thompson would just lead by example with his professionalism, calm presence on and off the floor, and ability to mentor younger players when needed, but now he wants to lead with his voice in Dallas and step up in that way. And this summer is proving it.

Klay Thompson is ready to lead the Mavericks in a bigger way

Earlier this month, Thompson led a mini-camp with his teammates in California ahead of next season, and this is perfect proof that he is taking his self-proclaimed goal of becoming more of a leader seriously. This trip to California included a decent amount of current Mavericks players, including Anthony Davis (although he didn't participate in any of the on-court activities), and Thompson becoming one of the main voices of the locker room is definitely not something that fans expected.

Thompson was praised as a leader, especially by Jason Kidd, as soon as he arrived in Dallas, but when it came to the court, Thompson typically wasn't someone who would be considered a major vocal leader. He would typically just play his role, which was knock down threes off the catch, give effort on defense, and space the floor, as players like Kyrie Irving, Dereck Lively II, and P.J. Washington were more of the vocal leaders.

Lively II is always barking out defensive commands, Irving is the glue that holds the team together, Washington leads with his vocal encouragement, and Thompson wants to join this group.

He is 35 years old, meaning that his career could be coming to an end before we know it, and he is bound and determined to morph into being more of a leader. Thompson knows that he still remains one of the key pieces to Dallas winning the NBA Finals, but he also realizes that he needs to do more for his team than just be a flamethrower from long range.

"I’m the oldest guy on the team, it’s crazy how these things happen," Thompson stated during a guest appearance on the "Showtime with Michael Cooper Lakers Podcast." "I gotta lead these guys with my voice, and I never really did that in Golden State, so now I have a different calling to use my championship knowledge."

As Thompson alluded to, he has immense knowledge through playing 12 seasons in the NBA and winning the NBA Finals four times, and the Mavericks are going to need as much of this knowledge and leadership as they can. Irving, the Mavs' main leader, is set to be out for multiple months to begin the season, and Thompson can help pick up the slack by growing as a leader and being there for his teammates as much as he can.

Whether that's constantly giving his input during timeouts, coaching his teammates on defense from the bench, or showing the youngsters the ropes of what it takes to be a pro in today's league, Thompson will have plenty of chances to lead more and prove that his value stretches far beyond the threes that he drains.