Steve Kerr of the Warriors ‘hates’ how the Jordan Poole situation unfolded following Draymond Green’s punch.
It is evident how much of an impact Jordan Poole had when you consider the Golden State Warriors’ return to the NBA’s top team and their fourth championship since 2015—the 2021–2022 season. Playing behind two of the best guards of this generation in Stephen Curry and Klay Thompson, Poole was a dynamic and nimble guard who fulfilled every expectation the Warriors had for a young, developing player.
Then the 2022–23 season arrived, a year that saw the Warriors experience a great deal of drama and suffering. The preseason altercation between Draymond Green and Poole during practice appeared to be the root of Golden State’s mental strain this season. The Warriors started to disintegrate after Green struck Poole in the face, and change was unavoidable.
The Warriors’ run of many more championship runs came to an end with their exit from the Western Conference semifinals. Behind Steph, Klay, and Draymond, the team was building a young core around Poole. After being traded during the offseason, Poole is now one of the Washington Wizards’ main players.
Even though the Warriors had to make this difficult choice, head coach Steve Kerr still finds it difficult to understand. Kerr, who had great faith in Poole’s ability to benefit this team, disapproved of how Golden State terminated the young guard’s contract.
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“I regret that it happened when I think back on it. In my heart, I know that we responded to the punch as best we could have, at the time it happened. However, looking back, which is always 20/20, we could have done things differently. I simply detest how Jordan’s story ended here, as he is a tremendous success story, Kerr said to Anthony Slater of The Athletic. Both he and we had a wonderful marriage. We won a title thanks to him. We assisted him in becoming a champion and in signing a significant, career-altering contract. All of it was extremely successful. However, I detest how it concluded.
The Warriors might not have captured their most recent championship in 2022 if it weren’t for Jordan Poole. To be honest, if not for Poole, they might still be together as a core group today.
For the Warriors, what Poole accomplished and his influence on the court were incalculable, particularly since he provided the spark they had been missing for years behind players like Curry, Thompson, and Green.
The Warriors gave Poole a four-year, $128 million contract extension after the team won the championship in 2022; the Wizards currently own the deal. The 24-year-old guard will be at Chase Center on Friday night, but he won’t be decked up in a Warriors uniform. Thompson is hoping that Golden State fans will treat Poole with the appropriate amount of appreciation on a night when they will be experiencing a range of emotions.
“Without him, we never would have won a championship in ’22. As easy as that, Thompson said, as reported by The Athletic. So on Friday night, I hope Dub Nation gives him the proper ovation.
