Per the Athletic’s Anthony Slater, guard Jordan Poole will remain in the starting lineup for the Golden State Warriors while serving as the official point guard. However, Poole will be in a “secondary playmaking” role next to veteran forward Draymond Green, likely until All-Star point guard Stephen Curry returns to the court.
Poole, a rookie who was selected by the Warriors with the 28th pick in the 2019 NBA Draft, has averaged 7.8 points, 2.0 rebounds, 2.0 assists and 0.6 steals per game this season while shooting 29.5 percent from the field and 26.5 percent from three-point range.
He’s averaged 10.7 points, 2.7 rebounds, 2.7 assists and 0.8 steals per game through the first six games of February, which include one start out his career 10 starts. The Michigan product has shot 41.8 percent from the field and 26.9 percent from three-point range in this stretch.
While Poole’s numbers are underwhelming, his college numbers show that he has much more potential as a three-point threat than he’s shown at the professional level; in two seasons at Michigan, Poole shot 37.0 percent from deep for his career.
That likely has played a part in why Warriors head coach Steve Kerr has opted to leave Poole in the starting lineup of a depleted roster. However, point guard Ky Bowman — an undrafted rookie out of Boston College — is another option for Golden State should they sour on Poole.
Bowman, who has played in 40 games for the Warriors this season while starting in 12, has shot 40.0 percent from the field and 32.6 percent from three-point range. Like Poole, he was also a respectable outside shooter at the collegiate level, knocking down 38.8 percent of his three-point attempts in three seasons.
Nonetheless, with Curry’s highly-anticipated return appearing just two weeks away, neither point guard will remain in the starting lineup for long.
