Golden State Warriors: Jordan Poole embracing and thriving in bench role

While much is being made about the potential return of Klay Thompson in the near future, there should be a separate conversation about Jordan Poole and what his unselfishness will mean to the Golden State Warriors.

A couple of years ago, when head coach Steve Kerr threw Poole to the wolves without Thompson for the season and only having had Stephen Curry for five games, no one could’ve expected he’d eventually have this size of impact, currently the Warriors third-leading scorer.

After Stephen Curry picked up a few early fouls, Jordan Poole came in and exploded for the Warriors. He’s clearly comfortable coming off the bench.

Poole signed right behind starting small forward Andrew Wiggins. That type of impact isn’t typically relegated to the bench; however, Poole will be sent to join the second unit and captain the bench once Thompson returns.

A five-time All-Star and one of the best shooters in his own right, Thompson was always going to start, so this was seemingly inevitable unless the Dubs started a small-ball lineup, putting Kevon Looney with the second unit.

Kerr opted to have Poole come off the bench, the most sensible move.

While Thompson is aiming for a Sunday return, Kerr saw the perfect window to get Poole comfortable coming off the bench. After entering and then clearing the league’s health and safety protocols, Poole gave up his starting spot to Gary Payton II, a more defensive-minded guard.

In the two games, he’s averaging 21 points per game, up from his 18.1 average.

While his second game back was a 32-point explosion due to Curry’s struggles and foul troubles, staying ready for a game like that is something Poole will have to get used to doing. He was a combined 15-for-23 from the field in both games.

Poole has averaged just over 21 minutes per game. That should see an uptick as he’s likely still returning to pre-Covid levels of conditioning. With that in mind, there hasn’t seemed to be any negativity coming from the third-year guard.

That’s a huge plus as the Warriors culture is one of unselfishness, one reason they’re second in the league in assists per game. With that in mind, Poole has already shown that he’ll be just fine as the best potential sixth man in the league.