This summer, Klay Thompson—a franchise legend for the Golden State Warriors—left the team due to his dissatisfaction with his job and the organization’s unwillingness to pay him on a long-term basis. He eventually found a three-year, $50 million deal in Dallas.
The Mavs had to give Thompson a better offer than their mid-level exception because they were out of cap room and wanted to retain Thompson. They thus negotiated a sign-and-trade agreement with the Warriors that, at first, involved three teams and had Josh Green going to Charlotte and two second-round selections going to Golden State (along with a sizeable trade exception).
The Warriors quickly realized how they intended to use that exception, but they decided to make the original three-team sign-and-trade for Thompson into a five-team shindig in which three separate players were signed and dealt in order to maximize their return.
They began by trading for a future second-round selection from Minnesota in exchange for Kyle Anderson, who signed a three-year, $27 million contract. This gave the Wolves a sizable trade exception. Two days later, they acquired Buddy Hield in a sign-and-trade with Philadelphia, sending one of the Dallas second round picks to the Sixers (along with a trade exception), on a somewhat complicated four-year, approximately $37 million contract (with $21 million guaranteed).
Now that it appears to be over, the entire deal looks like this:
