Where Does Poole Fit with the Return of Klay Thompson?

It's official: Klay Thompson has been fully cleared to return to practice and will return with the Santa Cruz Dubs where he can see more practice reps as he eases himself back into the fold. 

Dubs fans rejoice.

Klay’s return has been long-awaited and just the thought of it sends chills down my spine. It truly will be a special night, not only for Klay but for all of Dub Nation.

But as Klay returns, some questions need to be answered. Primarily, where does Jordan Poole fit in the rotation? Poole, in just his third year in the league, has transcended his game into being one of the league's best-kept secrets. Additionally, he is averaging 18 points per game on the season, a remarkable improvement given his history of being a two-way player for the Warriors organization just 12 months ago.

With Poole's rise to stardom, he has cemented his position in the starting lineup on the best team in the NBA. However, he finds himself in a very peculiar position. One of the league's best shooting guards to date is coming back after nearly two years away from the game. Klay is a generational type player, there is no denying that, but it may take some time before he can work himself back into game shape and develop the confidence necessary to be his old self.

However, this notion has been reiterated by Coach Kerr, saying, “The biggest thing is, he’s gotta get comfortable playing longer minutes”.

With this being said, Poole should see a continued workload similar to the one has now. Why take away his minutes? He is performing incredibly effectively in his role, and to take away minutes from him now would be very counterintuitive to his growth as an NBA player. The Dubs are rolling teams with him on the floor, it would be a mistake to try and diminish his role.

So what must they do?

When Klay comes back healthy, we may see a lineup that features both the Splash Brothers with Poole, Dray, and ideally Wiseman. Poole won’t be fighting with Klay necessarily for minutes but rather Andrew Wiggins. Both Wiggins and Poole are playing at an extremely high level right now and it would be hard to make the call on who gets the starting spot. It may become more dependent on who fits better with Klay on the floor as we have never seen either of these guys play with him.

Luckily, these are all good problems to have, the Dubs have an influx of talent, that if healthy, is poised for another championship run.

(Photo credit: Jane Tyska / Getty Images)