Mychal's Son, Klay Thompson Enters NBA Draft Without Agent

Klay Thompson announced Monday that he will enter the NBA draft.

Thompson won't hire an agent and could pull out of the draft before May 8.

In a story on ESPN.com, Mychal Thompson, Klay's father, said it is an "exploratory move."

"He wants to get a couple of workouts to see where he fits," said Mychal Thompson, a Lakers radio color commentator and talk show host for 710 ESPN in Los Angeles. "All the scouts love him. They love his complete game. I'm getting very favorable feedback."

therealdeal wrote:How high is his stock exactly?

Klay Thompson's measurement of 6-foot-7 in shoes was very impressive for a guard. He also impressed NBA executives with his shooting in the drills. His stock is rising and he's a likely lottery pick at this point.

Sam Amick of Sports Illustrated wrote:Teams appear to have put their red flags away when it comes to Washington State junior guard Klay Thompson, and he isn't likely to slip past the mid-first round.

The Cougars' leading scorer and son of longtime NBA forward Mychal Thompson was arrested in early March for possession of marijuana and suspended for his team's regular-season finale against UCLA. After putting on a shooting performance that drew rave reviews in the gym, Thompson impressed in his interviews and in how he handled the topic of his arrest.

"It was bad judgment on my part, and I've grown up a lot," Thompson said Thursday. "Teams will be concerned, but I'll just be honest with them and tell them I made a mistake and own up to it. I just learned a lot from it. I've grown up a lot from it, and they respect that I've owned up to it and I'm just honest with them."

Thompson, who said he would welcome a shooting contest with famed BYU gunner Jimmer Fredette "because I think I can hang with him," has modeled parts of his game after Boston's Ray Allen and Houston's Kevin Martin.

"They're great shooters and they're also really complete guards," he said. "Kevin Martin is so good with the ball in his hands, with his first step and his hesitation moves, and he's got that funky release but he knows how to put the ball in. I try to patent my game after him. I've been watching him on the Kings [until he left he was traded in Feb. 2010] since I was a kid."