Does Jordan Poole Have the Worst Contract in NBA History?
Former Michigan University star shooting guard Jordan Poole, who helped lead Head Coach John Beilein and the Wolverines twice to the NCAA tournament, declared for the draft after two years in college forgoing his final couple years of college eligibility in April of 2019. Poole went on to hire an agent and was drafted by the Golden State Warriors with the 28th overall pick in the first round of the 2019 NBA Draft. While Poole was solid for the Warriors for his first two seasons, starting 21 games combined between the two years and averaging nearly eight points his first season and twelve points his second season, it was not until his third season in the league that Poole would have a breakout season.
As the Warriors were heading into the 2021-2022 NBA season, they had a starting spot up for grabs as shooting guard Klay Thompson would be out for a large portion of the season as he was still recovering from his Achilles tendon injury he suffered in November of 2020. Poole ended up beating out teammates small forward Otto Porter Jr. and shooting guard Damion Lee as the season neared and this would without a question be the right decision as Poole went on to have a breakout game in November of 2021 where he scored 33 points and a career-high eight three-pointers made in a Warriors win over the Toronto Raptors. Poole would continue to show what he was capable of doing for the organization during the rest of the season as, after he started playing point guard when Klay Thompson returned in January of 2022, he would go on to score 20 or more points in 18 of his final 20 games as Stephen Curry was sidelined due to injuries.
It is without question that Poole’s 2021-2022 season was one of the best breakout seasons we have seen in the league in a while as it included accolades of having a 17 game 20+ points per game scoring streak, leading the whole NBA in free throw percentage shooting 92.5% from the line, finishing third in first place votes for the NBA Most Improved Player Award, scoring 30 points in game one of the first round of the 2022 playoffs leading the Warriors to a win over center Nikola Jokic and the Denver Nuggets in his first ever postseason appearance, among many other accomplishments. Poole went on to prove his ability to be a leader for the team as he was a huge factor in leading the Warriors to the 2022 NBA Finals where they beat the Boston Celtics in six games. Poole performed insanely well throughout his first postseason, averaging 17 points a game, and shooting over 50% from the field and 39% behind the arc.
While the Warriors were reigning NBA Champions there would be some unfortunate team tension that would be brought to the news as the 2022-2023 NBA season neared. This team tension started at a team practice in early October 2022 when Poole and Warriors power forward Draymond Green got into a fight that ended with Green punching Poole. Green would go on to apologize for the event, be fined, and have to get ready to play with Poole once again as later that month the Warriors signed him to a four-year contract extension that was worth $123 million. While Poole’s great play with Golden State would continue as he scored a career-high 43 points in a Warriors win versus the Toronto Raptors in December of 2022 and finished the season having averaged over 20 points a game, the Warriors team tension would continue throughout the season as a result of the Poole/ Green fight earlier in the season. This tension would result in the Warriors not reaching their fullest potential for the season as they lost to LeBron James and the Los Angeles Lakers in six games in the Western Conference Semifinals.
Due to the lack of ability of the Warriors to resolve the issues between Poole and Green and not seeing a clear vision for Poole’s future with the franchise, on July 6, 2023, the Warriors traded Poole, alongside forward Patrick Baldwin Jr., guard Ryan Rollins, and draft picks, to the Washington Wizards in exchange for legendary point guard Chris Paul. Unfortunately for Wizards fans from the very beginning of his time entering the Wizards stadium for the first time as a player on their roster, Poole has not been the player they expected him to be and the player he was for Golden State. In his season opener against the Indiana Pacers earlier this season he scored 18 points in the Wizards loss and has gone on to average close to 16 points in his 52 games played so far this season.
Poole has always been criticized for his shot choice and it has continued to get worse this season with the Wizards. He was brought to Washington to be the one option on offense and has been the second option being way worse than small forward Kyle Kuzma all around all season long. His stats are down in virtually every category and have led many to ask the question: How bad is Jordan Poole’s contract? When you think about the fact that the Wizards still have to pay Poole close to $96 million throughout the next three seasons his stats getting worse gets even more concerning. Should the Wizards look to trade Poole and if so, who would be interested?
