It's been a whirlwind few days for Washington State's Klay Thompson as he adjusts to life as a professional following the 2011 NBA Draft. On Monday, Thompson, Jeremy Tyler and Charles Jenkins were formally introduced to the media at a press conference, taking questions from those in attendance and talking about their plans and hopes for the future. Thompson has always been known as a silent assassin, speaking softly off the court while showing little in the way of emotion on it. And when paired with Jeremy Tyler, the contrast was striking.
Here's the 14 minute video from the Warriors, which centers on Tyler, for the most part.
It is kind of funny to see the second-round pick treated as a lottery pick. Tyler is no stranger to publicity: His decision leave high school following his junior year to play overseas drew headlines and set a dangerous precedent. But his time overseas was far from a success, instead serving as a cautionary tale. He bounced around, playing in Israel and Japan while dealing with maturity issues and a lack of playing time along the way.
In that regard, it's easy to see why reporters were curious about his story and what he had to say. That said, he was the 39th pick in the draft, is shrouded in question marks and seems to be more of a flier pick that Golden State hopes will pan-out.
With the media tour almost out of the way, the three will likely have some time to workout on their own or in an unorganized fashion with their new teammates. With a lockout on the horizon, it could be a significant amount of time before the league offseason truly begins, a scenario we've seen play-out with the NFL.