Steve Kerr: ‘I Hate The Way’ Wizards’ Jordan Poole’s Time With Warriors Ended

Golden State Warriors head coach Steve Kerr revealed that he wasn’t happy with the way Jordan Poole’s tenure with the team ended last season.

“I just hate the way it ended for Jordan here, because he is a huge success story,” Kerr said, via Anthony Slater of The Athletic. “For us and for him, this was a great marriage. He helped us win a title. We helped him, you know, become a champion and a guy who signed a big contract, life-changing contract. It was all wildly successful. But I hate the way it ended.”

Poole was dealt to the Washington Wizards on July 7 as part of a package in exchange for Chris Paul.

Poole was originally selected by the Warriors with the No. 28 overall pick in the 2019 draft, bouncing back from an inefficient rookie season to become a key contributor on multiple playoff teams. He averaged 13.2 points in 20.8 minutes per game during Golden State’s NBA Finals victory in 2022, shooting 38.5 percent from three.

However, his final year with the Warriors went south rather quickly. After signing a four-year extension worth roughly $140 million prior to the 2022-23 season, a video was leaked that showed Draymond Green punching Poole in practice. Green was fined for the punch, although the incident still hung over the team throughout the year despite the 24-year-old averaging a career-high 20.4 points per game.

“I look back at that, and I hate that it happened,” Kerr said, per Slater. “I know that in my heart, that when (the 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.”

With Poole’s return to Chase Center coming on Friday, he looked back on his time with the Warriors fondly despite side-stepping questions regarding the incident with Green.

“Successful time,” Poole said. “Learned a lot. Can’t ask for too much more than that. Won a championship. Played with [Kevon Looney]. Played with some of the greatest ever.”

“It was just dope to accomplish something you’ve been looking for your entire life, winning a championship at the highest level, seeing what that takes,” he later added.

Poole will be facing off against his old team, although he won’t be seeing Green on the court. The former Defensive Player of the Year is currently serving an indefinite suspension that will last for “at least the next three weeks” after striking Phoenix Suns center Jusuf Nurkić, according to The Athletic’s Shams Charania.