Jordan Poole

Warriors Notes: Wiseman, Thompson, Poole, Start, Meeting

November 19th, 2022 at 1:51pm CST by Alex Kirschenbaum

Warriors center James Wiseman, the No. 2 pick in the 2020 lottery, has underperformed for Golden State this season. He has been sent to develop with the club’s NBAGL affiliate, the Santa Cruz Warriors.

“I have been through a lot of hard times,” Wiseman told Sean Deveney of Heavy.com. “I have seen the negative side of social media in terms of myself. I don’t entertain that stuff anymore because it is negative and it is all gossip. I just focus on my priorities, getting in the gym and get better, working on stuff so I can be ready for the games.”

Wiseman is currently averaging 6.8 PPG and 3.8 RPG in 13.4 MPG for Golden State.

“He has looked (like he’s) in over his head,” a Western Conference coach said of the big man. “You can’t have him on the floor with Draymond [Green] because [the Warriors] get real easy to guard with them together. And you can’t have him out there with a big role with the second unit because he is not good enough to carry that group.”

Deveney speculates about what the Warriors could look for were they to ultimately opt to shop Wiseman and his $9.6MM contract this season. As far as return pieces are concerned, Deveney floats names like Raptors guard Gary Trent Jr., Jazz swingman Malik Beasley and Grizzlies wing Dillon Brooks, to help shore up the club’s bench depth, though it’s unclear whether all of those players would be available.

There’s more out of Golden State:

The Warriors have had an uneven start to their championship defense so far this season, stumbling to a 7-9 record out of the gate. Tim Kawakami of The Athletic ranks a variety of approaches Golden State could try to improve, ranging from promoting Jordan Poole to the team’s starting shooting guard spot over Klay Thompson to offloading Wiseman for defensive help on the perimeter.
Prior to a solid Friday night win over the Knicks, Adrian Wojnarowski of ESPN (YouTube video link) stated that the Warriors were not planning to make significant personnel changes this early in their 2022/23 season. “Despite the fact that the Warriors are 12th in the West, they’re only four games out of first place,” Woj said. “I don’t think there’s a real fear that there’s a couple of elite teams that are just going to run away with this conference. That certainly buys the Warriors time, and I think they want to know are the problems they have… fixable internally?… They are not looking at potential dramatic upheaval.”
The Warriors held a team meeting Friday ahead of their Knicks win in an effort to right the ship, reports Anthony Slater of The Athletic. “Draymond definitely held the floor,” Thompson said. “He’s such a great motivator. We all responded well.” JaMychal Green expounded on what was discussed: “We addressed a lot of things that needed to be addressed, and I think we are starting to get it together. We had that hard conversation that a lot of people don’t want to have, but we had that conversation, and it was much needed.” Green added that the team conversation “addressed the elephants in the room.”

Warriors Notes: Looney, Wiseman, J. Green, Poole, Thompson

November 15th, 2022 at 1:48pm CST by Luke Adams

While Jordan Poole is the most obvious recent example of a Warriors player who benefited from a stint in the G League before breaking out at the NBA level, Anthony Slater of The Athletic believes Kevon Looney may be a better point of comparison for James Wiseman, who is headed to the Santa Cruz Warriors on Tuesday.

As Slater writes, Looney spent time in the G League in each of his first three NBA seasons, including a stint in his second year after he had been pulled from the team’s rotation. Looney has since evolved into one of Golden State’s most dependable and trusted veterans, but admits he wasn’t thrilled by the assignment at the time, and he knows it may not be easy for Wiseman to take his own G League assignment in stride.

“It’s really difficult,” Looney said. “Especially when you’re a high pick. You got all these expectations. You’re coming off injury. You want to prove yourself to all the doubters. You see all your peers doing well, everyone talking about how good they are and you feel like you’re just as good and things aren’t coming as fast. It makes it frustrating.”

Here’s more on the Warriors:

According to Slater, JaMychal Green, Jonathan Kuminga, and Anthony Lamb are likely to remain in Golden State’s rotation with Wiseman in Santa Cruz. Head coach Steve Kerr said after Monday’s win that he hasn’t done Green “any favors” by how he has used him so far (video link via Slater). Kerr now believes Green is best suited to be a backup center, rather than a power forward, and believes Green’s ability to space the floor will help create room for Poole to operate.
After pouring in 36 points on Monday, Poole is now averaging 28.7 PPG on .475/.394/.944 shooting in three starts this season, compared to 13.9 PPG (.421/.323/.765 shooting) in 11 games off the bench. Kerr said on Monday that things come easier for Poole when an opponent’s top defender is focused on Stephen Curry and he can utilize screens set by Looney and Draymond Green (Twitter link via Kendra Andrews of ESPN). However, as he said last week, Kerr stressed that he’s not considering moving Poole into the starting five on a full-time basis.
In a conversation with Chris Haynes of Bleacher Report, Klay Thompson expressed some frustration that helping lead the Warriors to four titles and returning from two major leg injuries hasn’t earned him more leeway from critics as he works through an extended slump. The veteran sharpshooter remains confident that he both he and the Warriors will find their stride sooner or later. “I’m happy to go through this now compared to a few months from now,” Thompson said. “No need to panic. We’re like 14 games in. It’s a long season. We face a challenge of going back-to-back, which is incredibly difficult. And then trying to integrate the new guys. It’s going to take time but we’ll figure it out.”

Pacific Notes: Kawhi, Crowder, Poole, Thompson, Warriors

November 11th, 2022 at 4:02pm CST by Luke Adams

Clippers star Kawhi Leonard, who has been out of action since October 23 due to right knee soreness, took part in a five-on-five workout on Friday for the first time since he has been sidelined, writes Ohm Youngmisuk of ESPN. Leonard won’t be available on Saturday when the Clippers host the Nets, but head coach Tyronn Lue said he is encouraged by the forward’s progress.

“The first time he was able to get on the floor and play five-on-five and he looked pretty good,” Lue said. “Still have a ways to go, but that was the first sign of positivity of him getting on the floor, playing five-on-five.”

As Youngmisuk relays, Lue said that Leonard will need a “few more (workout) opportunities” before the team is comfortable clearing him. The Clippers’ head coach also said he’s not sure whether the former NBA Finals MVP will continue to come off the bench when he returns, like he did in his first two games of the season.

Here’s more from around the Pacific:

Since Cameron Johnson went down with his knee injury, the Suns have made an effort to reopen some old Jae Crowder trade talks, ESPN’s Brian Windhorst stated in the most recent episode of his Hoop Collective podcast (hat tip to RealGM). Like Jake Fischer of Yahoo Sports, Windhorst and his ESPN colleague Tim Bontemps have both heard that there’s no indication the Suns and Crowder will mend fences and have the veteran forward report to the team.
Moving Jordan Poole into the starting lineup in place of Klay Thompson isn’t something the Warriors will consider to jump-start their struggling bench, head coach Steve Kerr said during an appearance on Damon & Ratto on 95.7 The Game (YouTube link). “No, that’s not something I’ve given any thought to,” Kerr said. “Jordan and Klay are very different players. Jordan’s more on the ball, Klay’s off the ball. … Klay is a starter. That five-man (starting) unit is the very best unit in the league.”
While it’s a good thing that Warriors two-way players Anthony Lamb and Ty Jerome can be counted on to play regular roles, it’s not a great sign that they’ve already earned more trust from Kerr than the team’s young prospects, according to Dalton Johnson of NBC Sports Bay Area, who considers whether Golden State’s plan to develop three youngsters (James Wiseman, Moses Moody, and Jonathan Kuminga) while trying to contend is flawed.

Warriors Notes: Poole, Kuminga, Rotation, Thompson, Santos

November 5th, 2022 at 4:28pm CST by Rory Maher

The Warriors need Jordan Poole to play better after a “wildly inconsistent” start to the 2022/23 campaign, writes Monte Poole of NBC Sports Bay Area. As Monte Poole notes, Jordan has recorded more turnovers (14) than assists (13) over the past three games during Golden State’s current five-game losing streak.

“He’s trying too hard,” head coach Steve Kerr said. “Jordan is trying too hard to create every play. He’s at his best when there’s a flow to the game, he’s playing on and off the ball, getting some catch-and-shoot opportunities.”

According to Monte Poole, Jordan Poole is the key to fixing the second unit’s struggles, because he’s the group’s primary ball-handler and scorer.

Here’s more on the defending champions:

After losing to the Pelicans Friday night, the Warriors now sit with a 3-7 record. They’re the first defending champion to start 0-6 on the road in NBA history, per ESPN’s Kendra Andrews. Second-year forward Jonathan Kuminga played a career-high 38 minutes in the loss, and Kerr acknowledged his performance after the game. “It was apparent who really played tonight. [Kuminga] played really well,” Kerr said. “He’s earned some minutes … He showed tonight that he’s ready to step into the rotation and contribute. But that has to be every night … be able to play through the tough nights when maybe the minutes aren’t there.”
As Andrews relays in the same article, Kerr also marked Anthony Lamb, Ty Jerome and Moses Moody as noteworthy performers who could be in line for more rotation minutes. Lamb and Jerome are both on two-way contracts, while Moody was the 14th pick of last year’s draft.
On October 30, Kerr stated that Klay Thompson would be held out of one end of back-to-backs as he works on his conditioning, but it wouldn’t be for the full season like in ’21/22. However, apparently he’s changed his mind about that. “Klay may not play in a back-to-back all year. He didn’t last year because of two straight season-ending injuries,” Kerr said, per Andrews (Twitter link).
Gui Santos, a second-round pick in June’s draft (55th overall), is on the Santa Cruz Warriors’ roster to start the G League season, which means he signed an NBAGL contract. It’s essentially as though he’s a draft-and-stash prospect because the Warriors still hold his NBA rights, but having him play in the G league allows the Warriors to get a closer look at — and have a more hands-on approach to — the Brazilian forward’s development.

Warriors Notes: Poole, Curry, Green, Toscano-Anderson, Thompson

October 18th, 2022 at 9:10pm CST by Dana Gauruder

After taking a punch from teammate Draymond Green, Jordan Poole was advised by some of his closest confidants that maybe he shouldn’t sign a rookie scale extension with the Warriors, Logan Murdock of The Ringer reports.

Members of Poole’s inner circle were concerned that the team dynamics would be too difficult to repair. Before Green was reinstated from his team-imposed suspension, Golden State officials ran it by Poole.

Ultimately, Poole couldn’t pass up the financial security, as he chose to ink a four-year extension that can be worth up to $140MM.

We have more on the Warriors:

Stephen Curry is confident that Green will handle the adversity that he brought upon himself, Curry told Shayna Rubin of the Orange County Register. “He’ll figure it out. We will have his back for the entire process,” he said. “He doesn’t need anyone to hold his hand. He responds well to adversity and critics.”
Juan Toscano-Anderson, now a member of the Lakers, received his championship ring during the season opener on Tuesday. He told Jovan Buha of The Athletic beforehand that he’s grateful to be part of the ceremony. “I think it’s bittersweet, man,” Toscano-Anderson said. “… I’m excited to go back and get my ring. It’s pretty dope that I’m gonna be able to celebrate the ring ceremony on opening night with those guys, when the actual ring ceremony is bound to happen.”
While some of his teammates signed extensions, Klay Thompson is now ineligible to ink one until July under current CBA rules because he has two years remaining on his contract. He anticipates everything will work itself out, as told Mark Medina of NBA.com. “I fully expect to earn another NBA contract, whether it’s this summer or next summer,” Thompson said. “I’m fully confident in my abilities. I’m not worried about an extension in the meantime because I know it’ll happen if I just do my job and I just be myself.” He’ll be an unrestricted free agent in 2024 if he doesn’t eventually sign an extension.
What is the Warriors’ approach to its title defense and remaining a perennial contender? Anthony Slater of The Athletic takes a deep dive into those topics, exploring how the team’s two-timeline plan is progressing.

Extension Notes: Russell, G. Williams, Clarke, Poole

October 17th, 2022 at 12:04pm CST by Luke Adams

Timberwolves guard D’Angelo Russell is about to begin the final season of the four-year contract he signed in 2019, and will be eligible to sign an extension anytime up until June 30, 2023, the day before he reaches free agency. However, Brian Windhorst of ESPN and Darren Wolfson of SKOR North and 5 Eyewitness News suggested during the latest episode of Wolfson’s The Scoop podcast that an extension for Russell probably isn’t around the corner.

“I have not heard any discussion of him getting an extension,” Windhorst said, per RealGM.

Wolfson agreed, adding, “I think (Russell’s) representation has reached out to the Wolves, but it doesn’t seem like it’s being reciprocated.”

The Timberwolves already have significant financial commitments to Karl-Anthony Towns and Rudy Gobert on their books for the next several years, and will likely be signing Anthony Edwards to a lucrative long-term contract next summer, so it makes sense that the team would be unwilling to work out a big new deal with Russell before assessing how all the pieces fit together this season.

Here are a few more extension-related notes from around the NBA:

Celtics forward Grant Williams, extension-eligible for a few more hours, recently spoke to Brian Robb of MassLive.com about the possibility of getting a new deal. Williams shared some interesting insights, including explaining why he doesn’t view recently extended power forwards like Larry Nance Jr. and Maxi Kleber as direct comparables. “It’s one of those things like — you look at guys across the league, they maybe play different roles and a different situation,” Williams said. “You bring up Nance Jr. with the Pelicans and he’s probably their ninth or 10th man. They are one of the teams that are on the edge of making a run. Similar to Kleber’s, who is 30. He doesn’t necessarily have the versatility, the guarding — I try my best not to look at those guys. I just feel like you make your own market and understand your value.”
Brandon Clarke‘s four-year contract extension with the Grizzlies, reported to be worth $52MM, actually has a base value of $50MM, with $2MM in total incentives ($500K per year), tweets Fred Katz of The Athletic. The deal features four flat annual cap hits of $12.5MM, adds ESPN’s Bobby Marks (via Twitter).
Warriors guard Jordan Poole, who officially signed a four-year, $123MM+ extension on Sunday, told reporters that he “couldn’t stop smiling” when he put pen to paper on his new deal, as Marcus Thompson II of The Athletic writes. Poole didn’t have much to say about his practice altercation with Draymond Green, downplaying the impact he expects the incident to have going forward: “He apologized and we’re professionals. We plan on handling ourselves that way.”

California Notes: Jackson, Wall, Zubac, Kings, Poole

October 16th, 2022 at 10:23pm CST by Alex Kirschenbaum

Clippers head coach Tyronn Lue has claimed that a report indicating that Reggie Jackson had won the L.A. starting point guard gig over John Wall did not come from him, and that he has yet to make a final decision, according to Andrew Greif of The Los Angeles Times. Los Angeles will play its first regular season contest this Thursday.

“Both guys are in a great position, and their mindset is in the right place,” Lue said. “It is about winning. It is not about who’s the starter, who’s the best player. It’s about the right fit and trying to win, and both of those guys are on board with that.”

Here’s more out of California:

Clippers center Ivica Zubac spoke with Mark Medina of NBA.com for a wide-ranging conversation that touched on the team’s hoped-for title contention this season, its stars’ injury woes, the development of Zubac around the rim, and more. Zubac also gave head coach Tyronn Lue a rave review. “Ty has been around the team and me for a while, even before he became a head coach,” Zubac noted. “He’s been seeing the progress for a while. It’s in big part thanks to him. He’s been pushing us. Last season, he asked me to do some things on the court that he hadn’t asked me to do in a while. He involved me more offensively. I think that was a big part of my progression.”
Following a rigorous training camp, the Kings opted to retain point guard Matthew Dellavedova, forward Chima Moneke, and power forward KZ Okpala into the regular season. Jason Anderson of The Sacramento Bee breaks down how the new Sacramento additions made the grade. All are currently signed to non-guaranteed deals with the team. “As training camp has gone on, [Moneke] is trending upwards,” head coach Mike Brown said. “I think the initial shock of being in the NBA and the speed and athleticism and all that stuff caught him off guard a little bit, but he belongs on this level and he can help us. I think KZ, too. Both of those guys were two of my first calls, even before I really got the job.” Brown also raved about Dellavedova’s effort on defense. “If Davion [Mitchell] ain’t going hard, he will get embarrassed by Delly… If [De’Aaron] Fox isn’t going hard, he will get embarrassed by Delly. To have a guy like that raises the level of intensity.”
Warriors reserve guard Jordan Poole signed a four-year contract extension with Golden State worth up to $140MM. Now, new details have emerged about the contract’s various incentives. Anthony Slater of The Athletic unpacks the deal, revealing that – beyond the guaranteed $123MM – Poole will make an extra $1.25MM per year (i.e. $5MM across all four seasons) depending on how far the team gets in the playoffs. He will net an additional $1MM for each year he wins the league MVP award (so a very, very hypothetical total of $4MM), plus $1MM annually per every Defensive Player of the Year award. Considering his skillset, earning either honor even once seems fairly far-fetched. Poole could earn $500K per season should he qualify for an All-NBA team (there are a total of 15 such slots available) and another $500K annually should he qualify for an All-Defensive Team (there are 10 available openings). Slater notes that it is possible Poole grows into being an All-NBA talent, but is skeptical he could ever be an elite defender or named the league MVP.

Warriors Sign Jordan Poole To Four-Year Extension

October 16th, 2022 at 1:06pm CST by Luke Adams

OCTOBER 16, 1:06pm: The Warriors have officially signed Poole to his four-year extension, the team announced today in a press release.

As we detailed in a separate story, Golden State also extended Wiggins for four years after reaching a deal with Poole.

OCTOBER 15, 2:14pm: The Warriors and Poole have now reached an agreement on the extension, reports Wojnarowski (via Twitter).

The four-year extension will include $123MM in guaranteed money, with an additional $17MM available via incentives, reports Anthony Slater of The Athletic.

OCTOBER 15, 10:51am: The Warriors are finalizing a four-year rookie scale extension with guard Jordan Poole, agents Drew Morrison and Austin Brown of CAA Sports tell ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski (Twitter link). The deal will be worth $140MM, according to Wojnarowski, who says the two sides are completing the final details and are expected to have a formal agreement soon.

Given that the $140MM figure is coming from Poole’s representatives, it’s possible that not all of that money is fully guaranteed and that a portion of it is only attainable through incentives. Still, it looks like it will be the biggest rookie scale extension signed this year outside of the maximum-salary deals completed by Ja Morant, Darius Garland, and Zion Williamson.

Poole’s huge new contract agreement comes on the heels of a breakout season, as he averaged 18.5 PPG, 4.0 APG, and 3.4 RPG on .448/.364/.925 shooting in 76 games (30.0 MPG) for the eventual champions.

The 23-year-old played an important role in Golden State’s title run, increasing his shooting percentages to .508/.391/.915 in 22 playoff contests (27.5 MPG) and averaging 17.0 PPG.

Poole was one of three members of the Warriors’ championship rotation who was extension-eligible and entering a potential contract year this fall. He was viewed as the team’s top priority ahead of fellow extension candidates Draymond Green and Andrew Wiggins.

A practice incident earlier this month that saw Green punch Poole seemed to add more urgency to the Warriors’ desire to get an extension done, since they wanted to affirm their commitment to Poole following that altercation, rather than having his contract situation hanging over his head all season.

Even if Poole earns a full $140MM over the next four years, that figure will fall just short of what a maximum-salary contract would’ve been worth as a restricted free agent next summer, based on the NBA’s latest salary cap forecast. As our max projections show, using a $134MM cap estimate, Poole would’ve been eligible for a four-year max worth about $150MM with the Warriors or approximately $144MM if he were to sign with another team.

It’s unclear what sort of impact Poole’s extension will have on Golden State’s extension negotiations with Wiggins and Green. Joe Lacob and the ownership group have paid record-setting amounts on player salaries and luxury tax penalties for the current roster, but the team has suggested there’s a ceiling on what ownership is prepared to spend going forward. Lucrative new contracts for both Wiggins and Green may push the cost of the Warriors’ roster beyond that ceiling.

Poole will be the seventh player to sign a rookie scale extension in 2022, joining Morant, Garland, Williamson, Tyler Herro, RJ Barrett, and Keldon Johnson. Seventeen players remain eligible to sign rookie scale extensions before Monday’s deadline.

Warriors Notes: Poole, Wiggins, Green, Thompson

October 16th, 2022 at 9:03am CST by Arthur Hill

Saturday’s extension with Jordan Poole was the “first domino” in the Warriors‘ financial future and it may lead to the end of Draymond Green‘s time with the organization, writes Tim Kawakami of The Athletic. Poole will receive $123MM in guaranteed money over four years in what Kawakami believes is the team’s most important personnel move since signing Kevin Durant six years ago. The Warriors defined their future even more later in the day with a four-year extension for Andrew Wiggins.

Those deals will lead to a gigantic luxury tax bill and may limit the team’s options with Green, who is also extension-eligible. Kawakami notes that Warriors are currently looking at $190MM in salary and about the same number in tax penalties, which results in a $380MM commitment. Owner Joe Lacob and others in the organization have said they’re not willing to take on an even higher tax burden, and sources tell Kawakami that moving payroll into the $500MM range would result in an annual loss of about $100MM.

Poole is entering the final year of his rookie contract and will make $3.9MM this season before jumping to nearly $28MM in 2023/24. Wiggins’ new deal will reduce his salary by $9.3MM at the same time, so Golden State needs to trim some salary elsewhere to keep its tax around the same level. Green is an obvious target, whether or not he exercises his $27.6MM player option for next season. Kawakami believes it’s likely that Green will pick up that option and his representatives will cooperate with the Warriors to work out a trade.

There’s more on the Warriors:

Kawakami doesn’t expect the team to consider trading Klay Thompson, even though he’s owed a combined $83.8MM over the next two years. Kawakami states that Thompson is more valuable to the Warriors than he would be to another team and notes that he has been playing small forward more often, which allows more backcourt minutes for Poole and Stephen Curry.
The Warriors are currently projected to have a $219MM total salary for 2023/24 with a tax bill of $303MM, according to salary cap expert Albert Nahmad (Twitter link). ESPN’s Bobby Marks offers a video breakdown of what Saturday’s extensions will mean for the team’s future.
After spending a few days away from the team for punching Poole in practice, Green returned Thursday and promised to try to rebuild chemistry with his teammates, per Kendra Andrews of ESPN. “It’s about making sure our team camaraderie is right,” Green said. “You can tell when you’re playing against a team and they have good camaraderie … if not, they can be broken easy … if you have that, you can build through anything. [Our camaraderie doesn’t] get very shaken.”

Warriors Rumors: Poole, Green, Klay, Wiggins, Moody, More

October 14th, 2022 at 7:42am CST by Luke Adams

If the Warriors want to sign Jordan Poole to a rookie scale extension before the October 17 deadline, it will likely require a baseline offer of $120MM over four years, according to Anthony Slater of The Athletic, who said during an appearance on the HoopsHype podcast that Tyler Herro‘s deal with Miami raised the bar for Golden State and Poole.

Slater, who believes the two sides will get something done in the coming days, suggests that the incident with Draymond Green last week might’ve create some additional urgency on the Warriors’ side, since they won’t want Poole’s contract situation hanging over his head all year after what happened with Green.

Slater also observes that there are some teams who project to have cap room next year that could realistically offer Poole a maximum-salary offer sheet. In Slater’s view, the Magic and Spurs are among the rebuilding teams who could use a backcourt scorer like Poole and would have the financial flexibility to make life difficult for the Warriors if the 23-year-old makes it to restricted free agency.

Here’s more out of Golden State:

The Warriors appear to be in “wait-and-see” mode on potential extensions for Green and Klay Thompson, says Slater. There’s no real urgency on the Thompson front because he’s under contract for two more guaranteed seasons. Green can become a free agent next summer, but the Warriors will likely want to see how this season plays out to get a sense of how he regains the team’s trust, what his market will be like, and whether he’ll be able to top his $27.6MM player option.
Andrew Wiggins is also extension-eligible, and Slater believes the Warriors would be interested in exploring a new deal if the former No. 1 pick is willing to take a slight pay cut (perhaps from his current $33.6MM into the 20s). But it’s unclear whether Wiggins would consider that as he comes off his best NBA season.
Slater believes Moses Moody is a better bet than Jonathan Kuminga or Patrick Baldwin Jr. to step into a rotation role immediately this season, since he’s a good fit for a three-and-D spot. While the Warriors like Baldwin’s long-term potential, Slater expects him to spend a lot of time in the G League as a rookie.
The Warriors allowed their veterans to take on a major role in the handling of the Green/Poole altercation last week, according to Slater, who points to Stephen Curry, Kevon Looney, and Andre Iguodala as players who were very involved. “The players are of the belief that it’s better for the team to bring Draymond back in now,” Slater said.

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