Thompson’s love letter to Oakland

The Warriors are on their longest road trip of the season. When they return to Oracle on Dec. 10, there will be only 28 regular-season home games left to play at the junction of 880 and 66th Avenue.

The sand is slipping through the hourglass. And though Chase Center will be dazzling, there’s no doubt that when the Warriors move, something will have been lost forever.

The fans know that. And, it seems, so do the players.

That’s why it was heartwarming the other night to hear Klay Thompson.

Against Sacramento on Saturday, Thompson won the game on a strong putback of his miss. After he scored, he flexed his forearm in a fiery display that we usually don’t get from the most laid-back of the Warriors’ main men.

There was a buzz in the media about Thompson’s display. Is he more demonstrative because he needs to be with Stephen Curry and Draymond Green both injured? During the team’s internal spat, is he taking more of a leadership role? Is he feeling his prowess as he approaches next summer’s free agency?

Why was he so animated? Thompson explained.

“Knowing it’s the last year in Oracle, I’m just trying to enjoy every night and play with as much passion as I can,” he said. “Because I know it will go by like that.” He snapped his fingers. “I won’t be able to play in front of the same people, obviously, and the Warriors will no longer be in the East Bay, so that helps me a lot,” Thompson said.

“Just realizing this is such a special occupation. And we’re so blessed with the crowd we always have. It’s so easy to get up when there are 20,000 people here every night and we’re selling out, I don’t take it for granted.

“And knowing I was here when we kind of built this thing, it makes me enjoy it even more.” Wow. Simple words. But isn’t it refreshing to hear an athlete voice exactly what is important in sports? To know that he carries that feeling of privilege? That he recognizes that he has experienced and participated in a special and rare thing: building a champion from the ground up and bonding with a community.

We are so accustomed to sports stars taking things for granted. For not really getting the role they hold in our history and our hearts.

Thompson gets it.