With the season over, many Warriors fans are looking for someone or something to blame for the team’s failed championship run. And while Jordan Poole is an easy scapegoat, the issues may actually go much deeper than one player.
According to ESPN’s Ramona Shelburne, this season was doomed from the beginning due to Draymond Green’s punch to Jordan Poole before games began. Apparently, the leaked footage of the video (which went viral online) also contributed to a sense of district throughout the organization.
Additionally, the leaked video of Green’s punch, as well as the lack of punishment following the team’s investigation, reportedly resulted in distrust within the organization (the Score).
“People changed after that,” a source told Shelburne. “Everybody was suspicious for a while.”
Report: Draymond punch created season-long tension within Warriors. 🥊 https://t.co/orx1MtRRPk pic.twitter.com/EqRgRhD5YG
— theScore (@theScore) May 13, 2023
The incident was reported in detail in the days following the encounter, and we still don’t know all the details (like who recorded and leaked the video that was sent to the press). But we do know that Dray was responding to Poole disrespecting coach Kerr.
“Apparently Draymond Green punched Jordan Poole before the season because Jordan Poole wasn’t listening to, and was being disrespectful to Steve Kerr. He said there is more involved than that but that’s the immediate reason Draymond responded the way he did.”
Will Jordan Poole Return To The Warriors Next Season?
Poole was disastrous in the playoffs, and it’s hard not to think that his play was directly influenced by the incident with Green. He was never the same after that punch, and tensions between him and the entire team appeared to be off all season long.
Now, there is doubt he’ll be back with the team at all.
“I happened to be in the locker room when Jordan Poole spoke,” said NBC Sports Bay Area’s Kerith Burke. “It’s been a while since he spoke but before we get to the words that he said, let me just paint a picture of what that locker room was like. So the Warriors PR was coming over and saying ‘Jordan, could you please talk postgame?’ He seemed a little reluctant. You could tell he was very frustrated. He was facing his locker, actually, so as the reporters gathered around him, when it became clear he would talk to us, his back was to us.”
Only time will tell how the future plays out for Draymond, Poole, and the rest of the Warriors, but changes need to be made in some form if they want to return to their winning ways.
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