Golden State really needed Jordan Poole to step up for them this Monday night in Game 4 of this classic Western Conference semifinal series against the Lakers, but the 23-year-old’s precision was off as coach Steve Kerr placed him in the last 10 minutes of the match only to watch him fail to score again and again.
The Los Angeles team, on the other hand, went on to win the contest 104-101 at the Crypto.com Arena, and now leads the series 3-1. It was reported after the game that Poole clashed in frustration with his own teammates in the locker room after their disappointing performance.
Take a look at how reporter Kerith Burke described the postgame scenes around the Warriors players:
.@KerithBurke describes a tension-filled locker room when Jordan Poole talked to the media pic.twitter.com/VCWpciaq3C
— Warriors on NBCS (@NBCSWarriors) May 9, 2023
“I happened to be in the locker room when Jordan Poole spoke. It’s been a while since he spoke but before we get to the words he said, let me just paint a picture of what that locker room was like,” she started. “So Warriors PR was coming over and saying ‘Jordan, would you please talk postgame?’ He seemed a little reluctant. You could tell he was very frustrated.”
Now that their season is on the brink of elimination, Golden State strategically decided that only guards Steph Curry and Gary Payton II would step to the podium to attend reporters following the match, to avoid any further tensions with Poole.
“So, what did Jordan end up saying?” the NBC reporter said. “Because we need to acknowledge that this hasn’t been a great series for him, maybe not even a great postseason for him. Something has happened to his shot. It’s just not there. We know that he has a good shot but why is he struggling now? Why is he a little bit uncomfortable.”
Poole was swamped by journalists in their locker room, as everyone could feel a rigid atmosphere, he reluctantly talked for roughly two minutes.
“My shot. I don’t know. If I knew, I’d tell you,” the shooting guard gave short answers. “Well, my work ethic doesn’t change, my routine doesn’t change. Maybe opportunity changes but you can only control what you can control.”
Curry says there is no sense in isolating Poole, the whole team must take the blame
As an experienced veteran, Steph Curry knows well how to handle these situations. The Warriors star believes the whole team is to blame for their defeat, and Poole should not be isolated.
“We get questions about him a lot, and our whole team, we’re in this together in the sense of trying to figure out how to win playoff games,” Curry told reporters postgame. “We all have to make adjustments. We all have to play better considering we’re in a 3-1 hole. So there’s no sense in isolating him in this situation. It’s all about collective, what can we all do to be better.”
“The conversations we have in the film sessions, on the bench, in the locker room are all consistent throughout the season, especially in this playoff run of trying to answer that question. So he’s a part of that. We’re all a part of that. And if we’re going to get out of this hole, we all have to play better.”
This Wednesday, March 10, the Bay Area team returns to the Chase Center for Game 5 of this historic clash between Golden State and the Lakers.
