Klay Thompson greeted at Chase Center by Warriors staff in captain hats

SAN FRANCISCO (KGO) -- Hundreds of Warriors team employees lined up to surprise Klay Thompson as he entered Chase Center Tuesday night -- his first time back since signing to the Mavericks in the offseason.

The Warriors planned a "Salute Captain Klay" ceremony ahead of the 7 p.m. game, which is also the start of the second edition of the Emirates NBA Cup in-season tournament.

Warriors fans attending the game against the Mavericks will receive captain hats in honor of Thompson, a four-time champion with the Warriors.

Thompson played a main role in the Warriors' NBA championships in 2015, 2017, 2018 and 2022 and has the sixth-most three-pointers in the league's history, with his former teammate and still Warrior Stephen Curry the leader all-time.

The captain hats are presented by Kaiser Permanente and are a reference to Thompson's years of boating around the San Francisco Bay that he often shared on social media from his 37-foot vessel. Some of his trips across the water went to the Warriors' Chase Center arena on game days while he also took his boat to San Francisco for the 2022 championship parade down Market Street.

"With Klay, it's not the records or championships or clutch shots that stand out the most from the last 13 years -- it's the truly unique relationship he developed with the Bay Area and our fans," said Warriors president & chief operating officer Brandon Schneider. "He embraced Dub Nation and Dub Nation embraced him back. Warriors fans have laughed, cried, cheered and celebrated alongside him, and it's only fitting that they get a chance to show their love and salute him in his return to the Bay."

Along with his team achievements, Thompson also holds the NBA records for most three-pointers in a game with 14 and most points ever in a quarter with 37.

Bay City News contributed to this report.