Could Jordan Poole end up being the next James Harden?
At the beginning of the offseason, one of the strangest trades involved the Golden State Warriors trading Jordan Poole (and pieces) to the Washington Wizards for Chris Paul. It was not only odd that the Warriors decided to part ways with Poole but also that they wanted to acquire Paul.
Nevertheless, the Wizards hit a home run in taking a chance on an extremely talented young guard in Poole. As he heads into his fifth season in the NBA, it’ll be interesting to see what type of player he can be with an expanded role. For as productive as Poole was in Golden State, he was never given full freedom in Steve Kerr’s system.
With the Wizards, that will no longer be the case for Poole. Could that equate to another breakout season for him?
On his show KG Certified, Kevin Garnett gave voice to the idea that Poole could end up finding himself as the next James Harden. In a good way. He wasn’t talking about demanding a trade next or anything like that. Instead, KG was comparing Poole’s exit from Golden State to Harden’s departure from Oklahoma City.
Jordan Poole has star potential that could be unleashed with the Wizards
How both might’ve needed a similar change of scenery to fully come into their own as star players. When Harden was traded to Houston, it was almost as if something clicked for him. He was able to make the star turn and KG is basically saying that the same could happen for Poole.
Poole has star potential but there’s a case to be made that he was being held back in Golden State. Because of all the star talent that the Warriors have, it was unlikely for Poole to carry a huge load at any point. With the Warriors looking to keep their star veterans around, Poole didn’t have much of a long-term future in Golden State.
Now in Washington, Poole has the keys to the franchise. He may not be the face of the Wizards right now but there’s a path toward that happening over the next year or two.
With the Wizards, there won’t be anything holding him back from emerging as the star player that most believed he could be after his breakout season with the Warriors. It’ll be interesting to see if this is something that comes to fruition. The talent is there; maybe a change of scenery is exactly what he needs.