Golden State Warriors: Grading the first-round selection of Jordan Poole
By Justin Fried
The Golden State Warriors officially selected Michigan shooting guard Jordan Poole with their first-round pick. Here’s how we would grade this selection.
The Golden State Warriors‘ 2019 NBA Draft held a little more intrigue than it had in previous years for the team. After seeing their three-peat hopes fade away due to a lack of legitimate depth, the Warriors were in search of some viable bench contributors.
This is doubly true considering the uncertain futures of Klay Thompson and Kevin Durant who — even if they return in free agency — will be out for a lengthy period of time following serious injuries sustained in the NBA Finals.
As such, the player they opted to select in the first round would likely be asked to play substantial minutes even in his first season.
And that’s not just an estimation, that’s coming straight from general manager Bob Myers’ mouth who said prior to the draft that he expected whoever they took with this pick to play “big minutes” next season.
That player who will be thrust into this role early on will be none other than Michigan shooting guard Jordan Poole.
Now, this pick certainly wasn’t the most popular one. With players such as Kevin Porter Jr., Carsen Edwards, and even Bol Bol still on the board, the selection of Poole caught many off guard.
Most draft analysts had Poole as an early-to-mid second-round pick with some even having him outside of their top-50. However, Poole reportedly impressed in team workouts which shot his draft stock up just prior to Thursday night.
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Going into the draft, it was clear that the Warriors primary target would be a sharpshooting wing to help out with scoring depth. Once Durant and Thompson went down in the NBA Finals, it was hard to find a reliable scoring option not named Stephen Curry.
At the very least, Poole fits that bill.
As a sophomore, Poole shot 36.9% from three-point range and he finished his two-year college career shooting a healthy 43.4% from the field (37% from deep). The Michigan product was also a very reliable free-throw shooter hitting at an impressive 83.1% from the line in his two years with the Wolverines.
While he’s typically a shoot-first type of player, scouts were also impressed with his playmaking ability.
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Essentially, when he wants to be pass-first, he’s pretty good at it. But sometimes he could fall victim of playing too much “hero ball” which may not be a great fit in the Warriors offense that centers so much around ball movement.
Poole’s biggest deficiencies seem to center around his defensive IQ and turnovers on offense — two issues that are not uncommon with young players. His skill set is reminiscent of Warriors point guard Quinn Cook — although Poole is slightly larger at around 6-foot-5 compared to Cook’s 6-foot-2 stature.
With Thompson out for nearly all of next season, the Warriors are going to be very much in need of some extra scoring options at guard. Poole still needs some development to his overall game, but the hope is that he could fill some of those minutes early on.
That being said, if the Warriors were looking for a player to play substantial minutes from day one, it’s certainly surprising to see Poole be the pick.
The newly-turned 20-year-old is considered a project by most accounts. His offensive prowess is evident, but his defensive game and overall basketball IQ still have a long way to go.
It’s unlikely that Poole is given any starting minutes any time soon, but the pick could be considered a success if he plays meaningful bench minutes next season while he continues to develop his game.
Next. 2019 NBA Draft: Golden State Warriors add 3-and-D wing in final mock. dark
Not a complete disaster of a pick, but certainly one that’s a bit head-scratching.