One Year After G-League, Jordan Poole is On Fire
The All-Star Break was a very welcome sight for many Warriors players, especially Stephen Curry. The 2x MVP had begun to pick up his play from his slumping form earlier, turning it around and back towards his efficient performances of earlier this season. Curry has had to pick up a lot of playmaking duties with Draymond Green being unable to play, however, which has left the Warriors with a lack of shot creation.
Enter Jordan Poole.
The third-year guard has had himself a season, averaging career highs in all shooting percentages as well as points, boards, and assists per game. Poole was a late spring revelation last season, where he saw his role increase with some excellent play that was overshadowed by Curry’s monstrous April. This season has been much of the same, although a lot of Poole’s obvious growing pains have shown with some inconsistency here and there.
That inconsistency hasn’t been nearly as much of an issue lately, though. The Splash Nephew has been on an absolute tear, averaging 23 points per game and 5 assists per game in his last 5 contests. He’s getting it done on 61% shooting from the field, 59% shooting from beyond the arc, and 88% on his free throws. That’s good for a ridiculous 78% true shooting. As a frame of reference, Poole had just been recalled from the G-League at this time last year:
Poole has stepped up in a major way. With Steph playing to a degree of passivity either because of his increase in playmaking duty or just getting into lazy habits, it’s been hard for the Dubs to really generate scoring efforts. Curry is the de-facto key to the offense, but it’s been Jordan Poole who’s really been punishing defenses for hard traps and overplays.
While Klay Thompson is obviously one of the game’s greatest shooters, recently he’s been struggling to be the secondary option that he’s been known for in the past. His efficiency is down, he’s shooting more of his takes off the dribble, or off-balance in general. It’s hard to diagnose Klay’s issues with the volume increase, but whatever they are, Poole has been playing well enough to more than cover for them. Draymond Green’s return should fix some of this for the Splash Brothers in particular, but Poole also will serve as a beneficiary because his role will be more clearly defined even than it is now, which will only grow his confidence. He’ll get to share floor time with a high-IQ player who can help him grown his game. That’s pretty damn impressive.
This kind of hot streak isn’t new for JP3, either. Earlier in the season, he was shooting 71% at the bucket, which is impressively hard to do as a 6’4 combo guard. While it will take time for this to become a more regular thing (maybe not the same otherworldly numbers, but y’know, similar), it looks like the Warriors’ development staff is remaining the best around… especially if James Wiseman enjoys some early success.
(Photo credit: Nathaniel S. Butler / Getty Images)