The Golden State Warriors are halfway to a spot in the Western Conference Semifinals. The Warriors have looked worlds better than the Denver Nuggets through the first two games of their series, and while all of their All-Star and All-NBA players have taken the floor and play well, the biggest story has been third-year guard Jordan Poole, who is averaging 29.5 points and 5.5 assists per game while shooting 66.5 percent from the field and 58.8 percent from three.
Poole has been quite good this season, but his play against Denver has been one of the biggest reasons why Golden State are now the odds-on favorites to lift the Larry O’Brien trophy. And on a recent episode of his podcast, Green heaped praise on him for the way Poole — who he called “the Most Improved Player” — is like a second Curry.
“You think of a defense having to prepare for Steph Curry, which is a nightmare, and then having to prepare for him twice,” Green said. “That’s a totally different nightmare. And right now, that’s what I see out of Jordan Poole. When I’m out there playing with Jordan Poole, like, the same little ‘life hacks,’ if you will, that I use playing with Steph Curry to get him open, I’m starting to realize or have realized are the same little life hacks I can use to get Jordan open. And it’s in large part to his skill-set.”
Green then told the story of how he “absolutely hated” Poole before he came to the league because he’d watch him when he was a standout at Michigan — his alma mater’s rival — but then, he explained how something that Poole would put on display in Ann Arbor has translated to the league.
“He never backed … I’ve never seen him back down in a moment, and that dates back to then,” Green said. “Like, I’ve never seen him shy away from a moment, he wants all those moments, and it showed in these two playoff games.”
Green, Poole, and the Warriors will head to Denver for Game 3 against the Nuggets on Thursday night. The game is scheduled to tip off at 10 p.m. ET on TNT.