The Golden State Warriors left the Capital One Arena in Washington D.C. with a 125-112 win over the Washington Wizards on Monday night, improving their season record to 6-1 for the second-best mark in the West.
The game saw two major moments of taunting between Warriors forward Draymond Green and Wizards guard Jordan Poole. In his post-game interview, Green gave his former teammate his flowers for taking a huge jump in production this season after a rough debut year with the Wizards in 2023-24.
“He’s playing a lot better. His shot selection… you come to a new situation, as a competitor you want to show everything. I think last year he was pressing. He wanted it so bad. He’s settling in. Last year were bad shots but he wanted it so bad.”
Poole led the Wizards in scoring in the loss with 24 points while also having one of his best defensive showings in a while with three steals and four blocks. Draymond had his best performance of the season as well with 18 points, eight rebounds, and five assists in the win.
A heartfelt comment from Green about Poole is something many wouldn’t have seen coming over the last two seasons given their public fallout as teammates in the 2022 offseason, where Green punched Poole during a practice. This led to an awkward 2022-23 season before Poole was traded to the Wizards for Chris Paul in the summer of 2023.
There was a lot of animosity between the pair but it seems to be softening as both are moving on to the next chapter of their careers. Poole is trying to revive his career with a strong start to this season after disappointing many in the last two. He’s averaging 22.5 points, 5.0 assists, and 2.8 steals so far this season.
Green’s impact continues to be felt on the court and not on the stat sheet, as he’s averaging 8.9 points, 5.6 rebounds, 4.3 assists, and 1.4 blocks while being the most important defensive piece in Golden State’s second-best defense in the NBA so far.
Both players are hoping for different outcomes from this season as well. While Green and the Warriors are hoping to climb back up to the championship mountain and win the NBA Finals this season, Poole is hoping to impress teams around the league in what is likely going to be another tanking season on the Wizards.
This mini-rivalry had some solid moments in last night’s game, but both the teams and the players have different challenges ahead of them. The Warriors return to action after a league-wide Election Day break on the road against the Boston Celtics on Wednesday. The Wizards will return to the court in a road game as well, facing the Memphis Grizzlies on Friday.
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