It was the start of an unlikely bromance between Thompson, a five-time All-Star, and Patel, a 70-something grandfather who runs start-ups in Silicon Valley — and does not like to disclose his exact age. (“I’m old,” he said.) Patel has taken an interest in teaching Thompson more about boating, and they recently took a day trip together in search of halibut.
“We caught two nice fish and had a wonderful time,” Patel said. “It’s actually kind of a pure friendship because I’m not that into basketball. I’m into it when the local team is winning. I’m a sunny-day fan. So now, if I need tickets, I say, ‘Hey, Mr. Klay!’”
Teammates have taken up Thompson on his open offer to join him on the high seas. A trip comes with the caveat that they are likely to make a cameo on Thompson’s Instagram feed.
“Got rook on the boat with me,” Thompson said in a recent post, gesturing toward the second-year center James Wiseman behind him. “He don’t know a damn thing, but I’m teaching him the ropes.”
Leandro Barbosa, a former teammate who joined Kerr’s staff last season, has been a regular. Barbosa and Thompson will take their mountain bikes with them and dock at one of the small islands in the bay so they can ride the trails.
Brown has so far resisted Thompson’s appeals to let him take him out.
“I’m not a boat guy,” Brown said. “Maybe if we were in Turks and Caicos.”
Thompson, who could return to the court for Golden State by late December or early January, said he could see himself getting into sailing.
“The ocean and free diving and spear fishing and boating bring me joy,” he said, “second only to winning basketball games, really.”
