On Tuesday night, Klay Thompson made his much-anticipated return to the Chase Center following his exit from the team in the offseason after 13 years with the franchise, and the guard was given a hero’s welcome.
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Team employees lined up at the entrance and greeted him with rapturous applause and fans inside the arena cheered for him, despite him suiting up for the opponent. Shaquille O’Neal found the warm reception endearing and an experience he never got to live.
Special scenes as Klay enters the arena in Golden State pic.twitter.com/3K4EoIRBO9
— NBA on TNT (@NBAonTNT) November 13, 2024
During the pregame show on TNT, the four-time NBA champion claimed that he never received the kind of welcome Thompson did when he played his first game in Orlando as a Laker, LA as a Heat star, Miami as a Suns player, Phoenix as a Cavalier, or in Cleveland as a Celtic.
None of those fanbases were as excited to see him return as the Warriors fans were on the guard’s return to the Chase Center. On the contrary, their reaction was on the opposite end of the spectrum. O’Neal said,
“I always went back [to my former teams] as a villain. I wish I could have went back to a place and you have the video tapes, you remember.”
While the Hall of Famer was booed on his return to Orlando, his memory of his first game back in LA after leaving the team is seemingly a bit fuzzy. While there was no tribute video, fans inside the Crypto.com Arena, as well as Kobe Bryant, stood up from their seats and gave him a lengthy ovation during the pregame team introductions. Which is, contrary to his statement, not a villain’s welcome at all.
O’Neal’s first game back in LA was ABSOLUTE CINEMA pic.twitter.com/C0HNEgMUwn
— NBAFan (@NBABigFan35) November 13, 2024
Although it wasn’t a celebration like Thompson’s return to the Chase Center, Lakers fans were grateful to the center for his contribution to the team and were excited to see him in LA, but only until tipoff.
O’Neal finished the game with 24 points, 11 rebounds, three assists, and three blocks and led the Heat to a 104-102 win. Not really the results Lakers were expecting but then, when has O’Neal ever fallen prey to a rival team’s expectations?
Charles Barkley’s experience on his return to Philadelphia
O’Neal never enjoyed his first game against his former teams as he was always booed and Charles Barkley expected the same in his return to Philadelphia after leaving the team in the 1992 offseason. However, his experience was closer to Thompson’s than the four-time NBA champion’s.
Of course, there was no tribute video for Barkley, as the concept of paying homage to a former player wasn’t a thing yet. However, the reaction of the 76ers fans took him aback. Recalling the experience, the Hall of Famer said,
“The weirdest part for me was, when the game started, I was so juiced, and the fans were cheering, they weren’t booing. And so, I had built up all this rage, and yet all the people I see coming up [are] giving me a hug and everything. I’m like, ‘Charles, calm down. This is a big game for you. You gotta make sure y’all win.'”
He finished with 36 points on 14-of-19 shooting, 17 rebounds, and nine assists in a 125-115 win for the Suns. It was a happy homecoming for the Barkley and a memory he cherishes.
