Why the Warriors need Jordan Poole to keep letting it fly against the Lakers
Jordan Poole's late 3-pointer drew groans from Warriors fans, but it was
the right shot to take
>Golden State Warriors guard Jordan Poole (3) and Los Angeles Lakers’
Dennis Schroder (17) react steer a play in the fourth quarter of Game 1
of the Western Conference semifinals at Chase Center in San Francisco,
Calif., on Tuesday, May 2, 2023. (Ray Chavez/Bay Area News Group)
By SHAYNA RUBIN | srubin@bayareanewsgroup.com | Bay Area News Group
PUBLISHED: May 3, 2023 at 4:30 a.m. | UPDATED: May 4, 2023 at 10:40 a.m.
https://www.eastbaytimes.com/2023/05/03/why-the-warriors-need-jordan-poole-to-let-it-fly-against-the-los-angeles-lakers/

SAN FRANCISCO — The Warriors had nine seconds left Tuesday night to
force overtime in Game 1 against the Lakers. After a Steph Curry
3-pointer punctuated a 14-0 run and erased a deep fourth-quarter
deficit, the Chase Center crowd had every reason to believe a victory
was in reach.

The Lakers had reclaimed the lead with a D’Angelo Russell driving layup
and a free throw with plenty of time for a Warriors counter. They
trapped Curry up top, leaving Jordan Poole wide open on the other side
of the wing.

About a half-second separated Draymond Green’s swing pass and Poole’s
shot release from 27 feet out. The ball bounced off the side of the rim,
all but securing the Lakers’ 117-112 win over the Warriors on Tuesday night.

After his rough series against the Sacramento Kings, Poole’s gutsy
3-point attempt might have made Warriors fans groan. But if Poole has
the space and rhythm to let those open 3s fly, this Warriors team can
only hope he’ll take those. They’ll need him to get into a scoring
groove in order to overcome an early 1-0 series deficit to advance to
the Western Conference Finals.

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“It was a shot (where) he was open and flowing,” Curry said. “I’m sure
he felt pretty good about it. That’s why he shot it. There’s no regrets
on that. It’s just a make-or-miss type situation, and a lot of trust in
him and his ability to put the ball in the basket.”

Poole loved the look.

“Good look. Catch and shoot. Open. I just missed it,” he said. “I’ll
shoot it again, too, the next time we play and I get the same shot.”

Despite the brutal miss and perhaps a more costly missed floater 30
seconds earlier over an outstretched Anthony Davis, Poole had his best
game of these playoffs yet.

“I thought he was really good,” Green said. “I thought early on, he
passed up a couple and we need him to take those, and he started taking
them and it was great.

I think this will be a series that will go his way and that’s great for us.”

The 23-year-old scored 21 points on 7-of-15 from the field and 6-of-11
from 3 — a breakthrough after Poole made just nine total 3-pointers over
the seven-game series against the Sacramento Kings. He shot 25.7 percent
from 3 in that series and averaged 12 points per game, ultimately
leading to him playing just four minutes in the fourth quarter of Game 7.

>Golden State Warriors guard Jordan Poole (3) lays up a a 3-pointer
against Los Angeles Lakers' D'Angelo Russell (1) in the second quarter
of Game 1 of the Western Conference semifinals at Chase Center in San
Francisco, Calif., on Tuesday, May 2, 2023. (Ray Chavez/Bay Area News Group)

The Kings played a more aggressive defense on the perimeter and the
Warriors eventually won the series by attacking Sacramento’s weaker rim
protectors in the paint. The Lakers pose a different challenge with
long-limbed paint inhabitant Anthony Davis. Poole’s shooting and speed
will be key.

The Warriors’ most impactful stretches, including that 14-0 run,
happened with Curry, Poole and Klay Thompson sharing the floor together
with Andrew Wiggins and Green as the center. The Lakers were worn out
and the Warriors’ shooters in a groove, which allowed them to score in
transition, some in the paint — where they didn’t dare go earlier in the
game when Davis was fresher — and from beyond the arc.

Golden State is happy to let it fly from 3, especially if Poole is
feeling it. He found his scoring rhythm early when the Lakers stuck a
sub-par perimeter defender Russell on him to start. Even with Dennis
Shroeder and Austin Reaves guarding him at times, Poole was far more
efficient than in the previous series.

>Golden State Warriors' Jordan Poole (3) takes a shot against Los
Angeles Lakers' LeBron James (6) and Los Angeles Lakers' Anthony Davis
(3) in the second half of Game 1 of the NBA basketball Western
Conference semifinal playoff series at the Chase Center in San
Francisco, Calif., on Tuesday, May 2, 2023. (Nhat V. Meyer/Bay Area News
Group)

“Got the opportunity to play more out there and catch my rhythm,” Poole
said. “I think that’ll be a big thing. Only so much you can do when you
play 15 minutes.

“It’s huge. Being able to catch a rhythm early and see how they’re
guarding us, guarding me personally.”

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There’s hope in the Warriors’ locker room that Davis’ and LeBron James’
heavy minute load might add up in their favor, too. Davis, 29, scored a
game-high 30 points with 23 rebounds but played 44 minutes while James,
38, scored 22 points in 40 minutes. The Warriors won’t face another rest
disadvantage now that the series has begun, and their movement-heavy
offense could take its toll on the Lakers.

“We had a day off, these guys had a couple days off and their starters
all played 40 minutes,” Poole said. “It’s a long series. We got a lot of
guys like me, Steph and Klay — who move so much off the ball and have
good pace and we’re all in good shape. We can use it as an advantage if
they want to play the running game with us.”

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Shayna Rubin | General Assignment Sports Reporter
Shayna Rubin is a Bay Area News Group sports reporter for The Mercury
News and East Bay Times. She covered the Oakland A's from 2019 to 2021
and, most recently, the Golden State Warriors' championship run in 2022.
Shayna is a San Francisco native. She is a graduate of San Francisco
State University with a BA degree in journalism and a MA degree in
broadcasting and electronic communication arts.