Jordan Poole followed his breakout season by signing a massive contract extension. He played a huge role in the Golden State Warriorschampionship run and was expected to be even more important this season.
However, the young guard has failed to live up to those expectations, at least early in the season. He’s been inefficient and the Warriors’ bench has left a lot to be desired, especially when it comes to taking care of the ball.
That’s why coach Steve Kerr dug deep into what’s going on with him, and concluded that he’s he’s just trying too hard to create. Instead, he wants the Warriors to live up to their signature full-motion offense.
Steve Kerr Says Jordan Poole Is Trying Too Hard
“He’s trying too hard,” Kerr said. “I think Jordan’s trying too hard to create every play. He’s at his best when there’s a flow to a game. He plays on and off the ball. He’s getting some catch-and-shoot opportunities. The NBA is filled with the greatest athletes on earth and trying to drill through those athletes time and again is not going to be a winning formula. Ball movement is crucial to trying to win at this level.”
“That’s for Jordan, that’s for Steph, that’s for Klay, that’s for Draymond,” said Kerr. “And that’s the way that we’ve always played. Ball’s got to move. We’ve got to trust the pass to put the defense in a tough spot.”
“Where now, all of a sudden, the defense is trying to recover, and you’re attacking closeouts and a disjointed defense rather than attacking one guy one-on-one with four guys standing behind him in a shell drill. And that’s what we’re looking at a lot, so we’ve got to soften up the defense by moving the ball and getting a better rhythm to our offense,”Kerr explained.
At the end of the day, it’s still too early to panic for the reigning champions. However, they still need to find their groove and fix their rotations, and Poole will have plenty to do with their success this season and for years to come.