Jordan Poole finished the regular season so scalding hot for the Warriors that many wondered if the young guard might remain in the starting lineup for the NBA playoffs whether Steph Curry returned for the postseason opener or not.
To coach Steve Kerr, Curry's status won't impact Poole's role going forward.
“There’s no uncertainty," Kerr told reporters Tuesday, "Jordan is going to play. He has been one of our best players. So he can play with Steph, when Steph is on the bench. He has done all of that this year and done a great job of it."
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SIGN UP HERE The Warriors announced Tuesday that Curry, who has missed the last 12 games with a sprained ligament and bone bruise in his left foot, is making good progress in his rehab but his timetable to return to game action is uncertain.
Poole was unconscious to close the regular season. In his last 20 games, the third-year guard averaged 25.4 points and 5.5 assists per game while shooting 47.5 percent from the floor and 42.6 percent from 3-point range.
It's that Curry-lite impression that had Draymond Green wondering if Poole might not be headed back to his Sixth Man role.
"I'm not sure he goes back to the second unit," Green told reporters Sunday after the Warriors' win over the New Orleans Pelicans. "That's still to be decided and that's not an easy decision to make. So I'm not going to sit up here and [be] coach [Steve] Kerr and it's my decision whether he goes back to the second unit or not. But coach Kerr is a very smart coach, very smart man and just because Steph comes back doesn't mean you totally take the ball out of Jordan's hands, he's done well. What you've learned is that you have another weapon to get Steph off the ball and allow Jordan to make some plays as well."
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Poole's emergence gives the Warriors another dynamic shot creator who is a threat with the ball and his hands and working off screens and pin downs.
When Curry returns, the Warriors' best option might be to have Poole, Klay Thompson, and Andrew Wiggins flanking Curry, taking some of the scoring pressure off the two-time MVP and putting immense pressure on opposing defenses.
Kerr said it's "essential" that Curry gets in a full scrimmage before being cleared to return. The Warriors may be aiming for a Game 2 return for Curry, believing Poole and the suddenly blistering Thompson can give the Warriors enough firepower to win Game 1 with Curry on the sidelines.
With Poole leveling up and Thompson finding himself, the Warriors, once Curry comes back, will have a three-guard lineup capable of tormenting even the best defenses in the NBA.
No matter where Poole starts the game, he likely has played himself into the Warriors' crunch-time equation and will be a critical piece to what Golden State hopes is a championship puzzle.
