The Golden State Warriors are still basking in the glory of winning the franchise’s fourth NBA championship in the last eight seasons. With the parade done and free agency heading into full bloom, players are now maneuvering for new deals.
This is a common occurrence following a championship season, as everyone’s individual value is at its career peak.
One player that’s eventually sure to garner some major attention when he hits the free agent market is rising combo guard Jordan Poole. Nicknamed “Poole Party,” the former Michigan Wolverines star provided the Warriors with some much-needed scoring punch as a starter for a huge portion of the season. He then gave the champs some major minutes off the bench when Klay Thompson returned. He was the team’s second-best scoring option on many nights. He even showed No. 1 option potential.
Poole party has arrived 💦 pic.twitter.com/JozSG24XN4
— Golden State Warriors (@warriors) June 20, 2022
Will Golden State Give Up the Bag To Keep Him?
Poole is entering the fourth year of his four-year rookie deal, and he’s slated to make $3.9 million next season. But his play this season proved he’s outplayed his current contract. He’s a vital piece for Golden State that provides elite scoring to help Steph Curry and Klay Thompson. In fact, the play of Poole and Andrew Wiggins was the difference in the team beating the Celtics in the NBA Finals. They took so much pressure off Curry.
Scott, a respected NBATV/TNT analyst, also believes Poole is a system player and could become forgotten if he takes a bigger contract than the Warriors are willing to offer. Many believe it’s going to take somewhere in the four-year, $100 million neighborhood to keep Poole.
The Golden State Warriors’ extension offer to Jordan Poole likely needs to start at around four years, $100 million, per @Con_Chron pic.twitter.com/tCWEJGNioi
— NBACentral (@TheNBACentral) June 21, 2022
During a recent appearance on “The Big Podcast With Shaq,” the player affectionately known as “3D” for his range shooting acumen had this to say.
“Jordan Poole is probably gonna be the most interesting one because someone may offer him so much money, and he can’t refuse. Jordan Poole is about to be the new Otto Porter Jr.
“Otto Porter in Washington made a name for himself, went to get $100 million in Chicago, and everybody forgot about him.”
Porter is now Poole’s teammate, having signed for the vet minimum this past season.
First Poole Party of the summer!!! 😎
(🎥 @NBCSWarriors)pic.twitter.com/xI2j1oIwlp
— 95.7 The Game (@957thegame) June 20, 2022
Why The Warriors Will Go Farther Into Luxury Tax To Keep Poole
Warriors owner Joe Lacob has never had a problem going into the luxury tax to keep players they viewed as vital pieces. Poole seems to be in that rarified air and based on comments made by GM Bob Myers to Yahoo Sports, the team sees no issue in keeping the third “Splash Brother.”
“No, no. I mean, thankfully, I work for an ownership group in Joe Lacob that has committed all kinds of resources to winning. And I know that because every time I asked him about roster and strategy, it’s all about winning.”
“You don’t need to tell me how high out payroll is. It’s pretty high. So he just wants to win. And we’ve spent a lot of, and we’ve kept all the players we want to keep, so I don’t see that changing.”
Poole’s Fits Seamlessly At Either Guard Position
Poole averaged a career-high 18.5 points, 4.0 assists and 3.5 rebounds while playing both guard positions for stretches this season. He started opposite Steph Curry until Klay Thompson returned in January from missing 2.5 seasons. He then filled in admirably when Steph Curry missed the final 12 games of the regular season due to injury.
Re-signing Poole is key for the Warriors, as his play will extend the careers of Curry and Thompson, while also providing some really unique scoring and playmaking as well.
