The Washington Wizards cannot contain their spiral. Despite building a lead as large as 71-48, the Wizards ended up giving the Raptors some life, and Pascal Siakam and co. capitalized on it. The Wizards had six players scoring in double digits, with Kyle Kuzma leading the way with his 34-point performance. However, his co-star, Jordan Poole, did not show up.
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Scoring 14 points on 6-16 shooting, Poole couldn’t seem to shake off his abysmal form. Giving up a golden opportunity to break their losing streak, Poole and his Wizards now head home for a 3-game stop. After the game, Paul Pierce did not shy away from letting his thoughts known on the Wizards guard.
“Jordan Poole finding out how hard it is to be the Man. When the scouting report is all about u it’s tuff”
While there were a lot of people like Gilbert Arenas and even Pierce’s co-host Kevin Garnett who bet on Poole, Paul Pierce was always skeptical. 10 games in, it is starting to look like what Pierce believed was true. Poole was sheltered when he was with the Warriors, with the core trio and Andrew Wiggins sharing the spotlight with him.
However, Poole just has Kuzma to share the spotlight with him on the Wizards. Maybe we can call this transition trouble, or maybe Poole just wasn’t ready for the opportunity he was presented with. From people talking about Poole being in the MVP conversations to leading the Shaqtin’ A Fool polls, Wizards’ Poole has seen quite the arc already.
It’s up to the 24-year-old star to find it within himself and turn his season around. It’s still early in the season, and what he does for the next 72 games can make people forget how things started off in his fresh start.
Kevin Garnett believes Jordan Poole is being too arrogant
Not more than a month ago, Kevin Garnett spoke on his podcast, KG Certified, about Jordan Poole. That time, he was comparing Poole to Harden after he’d left OKC for Houston. Back then, KG said,
“Jordan Poole is the new James Harden. Y’all remember when James Harden left OKC and got to God damn Houston? Man, this the Jordan Poole show… I feel Jordan Poole feels like he’s been held back. That’s how I thought James Harden felt coming out of OKC.”
10 games in, Garnett changed the way he felt. Speaking about Poole, especially after his antics on Porzingis, KG felt Poole had been acting too arrogant.
“I thought Jordan Poole was going to give me a lot more showmanship, not arrogance. Cause, the s**t he did on Porzingis was just arrogance.Bro, I think he’s too laid back for me right now. I think he needs to just pick it up, be a little more serious, and be a little more professional.”
It’s up to Poole now to build on the trust of the people who bet on him. Maybe it’s getting used to the new system, or the newfound attention he’s been getting. Whatever it is, JP has time to figure things out. However, during that time, he needs to stop pulling stuff like what he did on Porzingis and the turnaround 3-point attempt like Steph does.
