SAN FRANCISCO – With injuries lurking around every corner this season, affecting the veteran core of the Warriors, the last thing they want to see is their most productive young star clutching his wrist early and keeping it away from contact for the rest of the game.
But there it was, in the second quarter Wednesday night against the Suns, Jordan Poole falling hard, coming up wincing and holding his left wrist.
“He’s got a little flair for the dramatic,” coach Steve Kerr said. “When he gets hurt, the whole world knows he’s hurt. But, yeah, he banged his wrist and I saw him (shaking it) and then he went out and made like three 3s in a row, so I figured the wrist was fine.”
Stay in the game with the latest updates on your beloved Bay Area and California sports teams! Sign up here for our All Access Daily newsletter.
Fine or not, Poole wrapped his wrist and kept playing. There was a game at stake. He was willing as a child to shovel snow off the basketball court and play outside during harsh Milwaukee winters, so if he’s able to walk at all he’s not coming out of an NBA game of consequence.
With one good arm, Poole took it to the first-place Suns, scoring a season- and game-high 38 points on 11-of-22 shooting, including 7-of-15 from beyond the arc. Adding nine rebounds and seven assists during his 37 minutes, it was the most complete performance of his breakout season.
“He kept us in the game. He was amazing,” Kerr said.
“He’s been incredible, not just tonight but overall,” Draymond Green said. “Nine rebounds. That was huge . . . that’s the growth you want to see. Those are the things that win games and, ultimately wins playoff series, which ultimately wins championships.”
Golden State Warriors
It wasn’t enough to prevent a 107-103 loss, but Poole delivered about all the offense the Warriors could muster while losing for the seventh time in their last eight games.
With Golden State’s other primary scorers, Klay Thompson and Andrew Wiggins, combining to shoot 11-of-36 from the field, including 3-of-15 from deep, the load landed on Poole. He carried it commendably. The Suns kept throwing their best defenders at him and he kept finding buckets.
“I just try to go out there and make the best play not only for my teammates but for everybody else,” Poole said. “We were getting Klay a lot of good looks, and every shot he took we’re OK with. Same thing with Wiggs. These guys are huge shot-makers. We know that. Even if they didn’t go in today, they’re going in next game, the game after that, playoffs.”
The closest Poole came to making a mistake on offense came with in the waning moments and the Warriors trailing by three. He launched a shot from just across midcourt with more than four seconds remaining. The early shot was a failed effort to draw a foul that would send him to the line for three free throws, and instead allowed Phoenix to shoot two more free throws.
Looking to Poole for offense has become a theme this month. His streak of games with at least 20 points was extended to 15. He has led the Warriors in scoring in seven of the last eight games – all since Stephen Curry was put out of action with a left foot sprain.
There were times in this game when Poole mimicked much of Curry’s game, from the bold 3-point attempts to off-ball movement synchronized with Draymond’s passing ability.
“He was,” Green said, recalling a particular play on which JP took a dribble handoff at the top of the key that “felt so nostalgic, no normal, like clockwork.”
RELATED: Poole joins Steph in Warriors history with unique stat line
The degree to which Poole’s wrist is an issue is not yet determined. It will be examined because that’s standard procedure when a body part is causing obvious discomfort and is retaped.
If he misses a game, the offense becomes threadbare.
If he misses multiple games – and Curry misses the final five games of the regular season – it’s conceivable the Warriors, currently third in the Western Conference, will fall out of the top four and lose the first-round homecourt advantage that comes with it.
Poole says of his wrist that it’s “just a bruise.” It’s his nature to say that, to minimize it. The Warriors have to hope he’s right.