Klay Thompson Says Jordan Poole Will Be 'Cherished' Forever by Warriors After Trade

Klay Thompson appeared on Paul George's Podcast P on Monday and said the Golden State Warriors were going to miss Jordan Poole, adding that the new Washington Wizards guard would forever have his place in Dubs' history.

"It hurts to see Jordan go. He was homegrown. I saw him put the work in. I saw him go 2-for-15 in a game, but then he would be in the dungeon—which we call our practice facility, because there's no windows—getting shots up right after the game. I'm like, 'Man, this kid's going to be special. And we wouldn't have won the [2021-22] championship without him. He was so important to us when [Stephen Curry] went down. ... That's like Steph and I's little bro."

Poole, 24, made a huge leap in the 2021-22 season, his third in the NBA, averaging 18.5 points and four assists per game. He followed that up by putting up 20.4 points and 4.5 assists per game, though his efficiency took a dip (43 percent from the field, 33.6 percent from three) and his defense continued to be a liability.

The Warriors were outscored by 0.8 points per 100 possessions when Poole was on the floor during the regular season, per NBA.com. When he sat, however, they outscored opponents by 5.2 points per 100 possessions, a pretty sizable increase.

It was nearly as pronounced in the postseason, when the Dubs had a net rating of -2.5 when he played and +2.4 when he sat.

Add in the tension that followed Draymond Green punching him in the face ahead of the 2022-23 campaign—and an enormous tax bill coming down the line that Poole's that would have been fattened by the four-year, $128 million extension which begins this season—and it felt as though a change in scenery was inevitable.

So out went Poole, and in came future Hall of Famer Chris Paul.

""I always say for me the decision to (trade for) Chris was easy. I hated having to give up Jordan, who has been such a big part of what we've done the last few years," new general manager Mike Dunleavy Jr. told The Athletic's Tim Kawakami last week. "I was here when we drafted him. But in terms of basketball and moving forward, financial flexibility, all that stuff you factor in, it was a relatively easy decision for us."

And when asked if he thought Poole and Green potentially wouldn't be able to make things worked as teammates going forward, he added: "I can't say that's not an argument. Can make a good point about that."

So the Warriors chose Green, re-signing him to a four-year, $100 million deal, and traded Poole to alleviate some long-term payroll bloat. But Thompson, at least, will miss his former backcourt mate.