Steve Kerr points out Warriors' key void to fill after Klay Thompson's departure 

The Golden State Warriors lost one of the NBA's premier 3-point marksmen over the offseason, with veteran shooting guard Klay Thompson joining the Dallas Mavericks. According to Warriors coach Steve Kerr, he will compensate for the loss by having his squad's role players attempt more triples during the 2024-25 campaign.

Golden State has become renowned for its outside shooting prowess during Kerr's coaching tenure, which began in 2014. Throughout that span, Kerr coached what most consider the NBA's all-time greatest shooting duo, Thompson and superstar point guard Steph Curry.

However, Curry and Thompson were split up over the summer, with the latter joining Dallas on a three-year, $50 million contract via a sign-and-trade deal.

The Warriors responded by adding several veteran role players, including De'Anthony Melton, Buddy Hield and Kyle Anderson. However, none are the same caliber offensive player as Thompson.

Last season, the four-time NBA champion was Golden State's second-highest volume 3-point shooter behind Curry, averaging 3.5 3-pointers on 9.0 attempts per game. He tallied 268 triples over 77 outings, marking the league's fourth most. Moreover, the Warriors finished second in treys per game (14.8) and fourth in attempts per game (38.9).

While Klay Thompson is out of the picture, Kerr hopes to maintain the franchise's outside shooting-heavy identity. At training camp on Tuesday, the veteran coach outlined his plan for his role players to increase their 3-point shooting volume this upcoming season.

"I want [Andrew] Wig[gins] shooting six or seven 3s a game, I want Brandin [Podziemski], I want Moses [Moody], I want De'Anthony — I wanna be a high-volume 3-point shooting team. I think that's important for us," Kerr said.

"And the big shift is Klay's not here. So, we were fourth in the league in 3-point attempts last year, but Klay probably shot eight or 10 of them himself every game. So, we're gonna have to fill that void, and that's gonna come from multiple people," he continued.

Time will tell whether Golden State's offense-by-committee approach around Curry pays off. The team appears to be lacking a clear-cut secondary scoring option. However, perhaps its newfound depth will help it stay afloat in the ultra-competitive Western Conference.

The new-look Warriors will attempt to bounce back from last season's 10th-place West finish (46-36).

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Also Read: Steph Curry discusses adjusting to Klay Thompson's replacement on Warriors: "Not too worried about that"

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Steve Kerr looking forward to Warriors' first matchup against Klay Thompson

Steve Kerr may still be sorting out his rotation for the Warriors' post-Klay Thompson era. Nevertheless, he is already anticipating his squad's first showdown against the five-time All-Star.

After Thompson joined Dallas, Kerr noted that he was looking forward to his ex-star player's "emotional" return to Chase Center.

"When the season starts, it’s going to be really weird," Kerr said. "I know we’re all going to have that date circled when he comes back to Chase Center. That will be one of the strangest, most emotional nights of all of our careers, for sure."

Golden State will first host Thompson's Mavericks on Nov. 12. Thus, the contest should be one of the most eventful early-season matchups across the league.

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Also Read: After 13 years with Steph Curry, Klay Thompson labels pick-and-roll game with Luka Doncic 'the best' he's ever seen