Julie Thompson is an American former collegiate volleyball player, longtime educator, and the mother of three professional athletes, most notably Golden State Warriors and Dallas Mavericks guard Klay Thompson.
Married to former NBA champion Mychal Thompson since 1987, Julie has spent decades as a steady, largely private presence behind one of basketball’s most accomplished families.
Her husband and son, both describe her as being the most naturally gifted athlete in the household.
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Julie Thompson Biography
She was born on January 25, 1964, and raised in Ridgefield, Washington, alongside two older brothers, including John Leslie, who went on to play basketball and football at Occidental College. Her full name is Julie Leslie.
From a young age, Julie Thompson was displayed exceptional athletic ability across multiple sports, beginning with gymnastics before shifting her focus to volleyball and track and field during high school.
She graduated from Ridgefield High School in 1982, where she helped lead the volleyball team to back-to-back state runner-up finishes in 1980 and 1981.
She was also a standout track and field athlete, winning the Washington Class A state championship in the long jump.
Julie chose to attend the University of Portland because the school emphasized academics as well as athletics, despite receiving other athletic scholarship opportunities.
She played two seasons of NCAA Division I volleyball at Portland before transferring to the University of San Francisco, where she continued competing as an outside hitter while earning a bachelor’s degree in accounting.
Mychal Thompon’s Wife
Julie Thompson met her future husband, Mychal Thompson, at a gym on the University of Portland campus, where he was playing in a pickup basketball game.
Mychal later recalled catching sight of Julie out of the corner of his eye and momentarily forgetting about the game.
According to Julie, one of their earliest conversations included Mychal joking that together they would produce an All-American athlete, a comment she later said she responded to by rolling her eyes during an interview with The Columbian. The couple began dating and got married in 1987.
Mychal Thompson had already established himself as one of the NBA’s top players after being selected first overall by the Portland Trail Blazers in the 1978 NBA Draft, becoming the first international player to be chosen with the first overall pick.
He later played for the Trail Blazers, the San Antonio Spurs, and the Los Angeles Lakers, winning back-to-back NBA championships with the Lakers in 1987 and 1988 alongside Magic Johnson and Kareem Abdul-Jabbar.
After retiring, Mychal transitioned into broadcasting and has spent many years as the Los Angeles Lakers’ radio color commentator.
Klay Thompson’s Mother
Julie and Mychal Thompson have three sons, all of whom became professional athletes. Their eldest son, Mychel Thompson, was born on June 1, 1988, and played college basketball at Pepperdine University before pursuing a professional career that included a season with the Cleveland Cavaliers, several years in the NBA G League, and a stint in Italy’s top professional league.
He currently serves as the Family Ambassador for the Thompson Family Foundation. Their middle son, Klay Thompson, was born on February 8, 1990.
He attended Santa Margarita Catholic High School in California, where he averaged 21 points per game as a senior and was named California Division III State Player of the Year.
He later starred at Washington State University, leading the Pac-10 Conference in scoring during his junior season and setting the school’s single-season scoring record with 733 points before declaring for the 2011 NBA Draft, in which the Golden State Warriors selected him with the 11th overall pick.
Klay went on to become one of the greatest shooting guards of his generation, forming the iconic Splash Brothers partnership with Stephen Curry.
The duo combined for an NBA-record 484 three-pointers during the 2015–16 season. Klay won multiple NBA championships with the Warriors and earned multiple NBA All-Star selections.
During the 2024 offseason, he joined the Dallas Mavericks, where he continues his NBA career. Their youngest son, Trayce Thompson, was born on March 15, 1991, and chose baseball instead of basketball.
He developed into a professional outfielder in Major League Baseball and has played for several MLB clubs, including the Los Angeles Dodgers.
Despite raising three sons who became professional athletes, Julie Thompson has consistently said that neither she nor Mychal pushed their children into sports. Instead, each son pursued athletics out of personal interest.
Both Mychal and Klay have publicly described Julie as the family’s greatest natural athlete, challenging the common assumption that their athletic ability came primarily from their NBA champion father.
Mychal has said Julie was talented enough to have played for Team USA. At the same time, Klay jokingly remarked in a 2011 interview with The Spokesman-Review that his father gave the brothers their height, whereas their athleticism came from their mother.
Julie also played a hands-on role during one of the most difficult periods of Klay’s career, supporting him throughout his recovery from a serious Achilles injury.
In 2017, the Thompson family co-founded the Thompson Family Foundation, with all five family members serving as co-founders and Julie taking on a leadership role within the organization.
The foundation promotes fitness and education for young people in both the United States and the Bahamas, reflecting Mychal’s heritage. Its mission emphasizes equal opportunities, teamwork through sports, and the importance of education alongside athletic development.
Julie’s brother, John Leslie, who frequently spent time with the family while Mychal traveled during his NBA career, once recalled a household filled with athletic shoes and broken windows, reflecting just how active and competitive the three boys were from an early age.
