Brandin Podziemski has emerged as a versatile talent who excels in multiple areas on the basketball court. But he’s still seen as a role player or an auxiliary roster member. Even though Steve Kerr thinks highly of the 22-year-old shooting guard, fans have found themselves disagreeing with his take on Stephen Curry and Draymond Green’s retirement.
“When they leave this thing, they’ve got to leave it with somebody. How can I have their trust? And they can go to (owner) Joe (Lacob) and (general manager) Mike (Dunleavy) and be like, “Hey, we want to leave it with him. He’s going to continue what we’re leaving. So, I think about that all the time, and I set myself up in that position to have that. And there are a lot of other things than just skill that you need to be in that position.” Podziemski told The Athletic.
Fans did not see it the same way. Some wanted Podziemski to do more before saying things like these, and some just made fun of him. Passionate Golden State Warriors’ fans immediately took to X to voice their pushback:
“Well, you need to step it up in every area. If you’re talking like this, you’d better be putting in extra work like Jordan and Kobe. You should be showing up Curry on the court if you want it passed down to you.”
“Boyyyy, you’re about to be traded for Lauri Markkanen at the deadline, you’re not gonna be there long
“Umm, no. I would prefer to trade him for a better player who can help Curry get one more title. He is a good 7th or 8th man on a team, and may peak as a top 4-5 on a team, but will never be THE GUY.”
“Boy really thinks he’s the main character —he’s barely cracking the starting lineup and already writing the sequel to the Warriors dynasty. Someone, wake him up, please.”
“That was supposed to be Jordan Poole, James Wiseman, and Jonathan Kuminga.”
“Who agrees with me that he just jinxed himself? No king aspirant that announces his intentions eventually becomes king.”
“Steph’s reply would be the basketball equivalent of, put the fries in the bag, lil bro, and keep it moving.”
“This is like if Rusty LaRue said this in 1998 about MJ and the Bulls.”
“Why are we acting like Podz isn’t a top 10 under-age-23 player????”
“Y’all are trashing him, but how the front office has treated him, this is 100% happening.”
Podziemski was indeed an important part of the roster last season, as the Warriors made massive changes to their lineups by bringing in Jimmy Butler. The 22-year-old has started the preseason with an above-average display. Playing limited minutes in the preseason, he has averaged 6.5 points, 2.5 rebounds, and 3.5 assists in the first two games against the Lakers and Blazers, respectively.
Head Coach Steve Kerr recently noted that he is one of the most compatible players on the roster, and after Curry, he’s the player who fits into any lineup and with any combination. So there’s some merit to how the young shooting guard is trying to project himself. But fans want to see him consistently deliver these performances, season after season, before they can anoint him as the future of this storied franchise.
Jordan Poole and Jonathan Kuminga have said similar things in the past. Despite being NBA champions, one of them found himself playing for the Washington Wizards and eventually the Pelicans now, and the other made it back to the roster after a stretched-out contract negotiation.
Thus, fans are skeptical of anyone making comments about being the future of the Golden State Warriors. The franchise has extremely high standards due to the greatness of one, Stephen Curry, and Podziemski should be lucky to be a part of the team two years from now, let alone leading it.
The way he’s carried himself up until now, he could become the next torchbearer of culture for the Warriors, a role that a veteran like Draymond Green has been playing for over a decade now. Podziemski has a long career ahead of him, so he’ll have to learn how to navigate such questions and not make himself vulnerable to criticism by getting way too ahead of himself.
