Former Warriors guard Jordan Poole will return to Chase Center on Friday for the first time since being traded to the Washington Wizards this summer.
The move stunned Poole, the NBA world and Warriors coach Steve Kerr who, even four months later, didn’t like how things unfolded for the young guard.
“I look back at that, and I hate that it happened,” Kerr told The Athletic’s Anthony Slater.
“I know that in my heart, that when [the Draymond Green punch] happened, we handled it the best way we thought we could handle it.
But in hindsight — and hindsight is always 20/20 — we could have done better for sure.
Klay Thompson was one of the NBA players who most defined this generation, stylistically.
LeBron James may have been the best player, Steph Curry the one who ushered in modernity, but when you were thinking about the guys on your team who weren’t good enough, your mind drifted to Klay.
Why can’t they be as big as Klay? As good at defending?
Why can’t they just shoot like Klay, move off the ball like Klay, not demand the ball all the damn time, not feel the need to prove themselves by going on silly dribbling adventures?
He was so good at playing a role that he became a guaranteed Hall of Famer.
But he tore his Achilles a few years back, managed a decent season, and has just not been the same guy.
Sometimes he shows glimpses of his former self and lights it up, but time and injury have shaved off the extra precision that made him a force on the court. Now, Klay is just OK.
Athletes try to project calm as this happens to them.
They’re focused on the process, taking it one day at a time, all that jazz.
Klay, a serene presence for most of his career, has instead opted to rage against the dying of the light.
After getting benched during the end of a close game against the Suns, he didn’t hold back with reporters: “Of course it frustrates me.
You think I’m gonna just chill? I’m freaking competitive, man.
At the end of the day, I’m one of the most competitive people to put this uniform on. I can say that with confidence, too.
But whatever. I guess I didn’t bring it tonight. I deserved it.”
