Warriors’ role players thrive as Dubs beat Nuggets by two to open preseason play

December 12, 2020; San Francisco, California, USA; Golden State Warriors guard Stephen Curry (30) shoots the basketball against the Denver Nuggets during the second quarter at Chase Center. Mandatory Credit: Kyle Terada-USA TODAY Sports
December 12, 2020; San Francisco, California, USA; Golden State Warriors guard Stephen Curry (30) shoots the basketball against the Denver Nuggets during the second quarter at Chase Center. Mandatory Credit: Kyle Terada-USA TODAY Sports
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(Photo by Abbie Parr/Getty Images) (Photo by Abbie Parr/Getty Images)
(Photo by Abbie Parr/Getty Images) (Photo by Abbie Parr/Getty Images)

Warriors Key Performances:

Jordan Poole, G

The second-year guard out of Michigan played well in the 15-minute debut of his new haircut.

However, in those 15 minutes, he made some big plays, especially down the stretch. His ball-handling and playmaking looked to be improved in the little time we did see, as he used a couple of ball screens with a few different bigs to create plays.

There was also a lovely drive Poole had where he kissed the ball off the top of the glass for a nice lay in over the defender’s outstretched arms. Something we did not see too much from him in his rookie season just last year.

Poole’s shot selection looked much better as well. Poole tended to force or settle for some shots he seemed he was not yet ready for last season.

In this game, if there was nothing there, he kept the ball moving. This may be why he only shot four times in total. However, he batted 100 percent in those four attempts, one of them being from deep.