Golden State Warriors' rookie Brandin Podziemski has ended a frantic few days with his first All-Star weekend appearance as a member of Team Pau in the Rising Star Challenge.
Friday night's Rising Stars tournament was Podziemski's third game in three days in three different cities, having played at Chase Center on Wednesday against the LA Clippers and in Utah against the Jazz on Thursday.
Golden State Warriors' rookie Brandin Podziemski and Team Pau have failed to make it to the final of the Rising Stars Challenge at All-Star weekend
Team Pau suffered an upset loss in the 'first to 40' semi-final against Team Detlef, with Podziemski recording three points, two rebounds and four assists in just over 11 minutes.
Team Detlef was made up of some of the G League's rising young stars, while Team Pau had a star-studded lineup featuring Podziemski, French phenom and 2023 number one Victor Wembanyama, second overall pick Brandon Miller, 2022 third overall pick Jabari Smith Jr., lottery picks Bilal Coulibaly and Cason Wallace, and impressive Miami Heat guard Jaime Jacquez Jr.
Wembanyama led the way with 11 points, seven rebounds and two blocks in less than 12 minutes, but it wasn't enough as their less-fancied opponents came away with a 41-36 victory.
Brandin 🤝 Wemby pic.twitter.com/7WKhnyFcSj
— Golden State Warriors (@warriors) February 17, 2024
It's been a whirlwind few days for Podziemski who continues to have an incredible rookie season. The 20-year-old had a career-high 25 points, along with seven rebounds and eight assists against the Clippers on Wednesday.
That performance and Podziemski's general production was rewarded on Thursday when he was promoted to the starting lineup, taking the place of franchise legend and future Hall-of-Famer Klay Thompson.
The 19th overall pick had another 13 points, six rebounds and eight assists against the Jazz, with head coach Steve Kerr confirming postgame that Thompson would continue coming off the bench for the moment.
Podziemski has averaged 9.9 points, 5.8 rebounds and 3.9 assists during his rookie year, with his form recognized in being ranked fourth in NBA.com's Kia Rookie Ladder heading into the All-Star break.