Getty Jordan Poole of the Golden State Warriors.
The Golden State Warriors have struggled a lot this season, especially when it comes to winning on the road. However, they have also been dealt a rough hand when it comes to injuries, as multiple players have missed a ton of time this year.
Due to that, they have had to rely heavily on their role players at times. Both of their two-way players – Anthony Lamb and Ty Jerome – have played heavy minutes, and the Warriors recently converted Lamb’s deal to a standard contract. However, they didn’t have a roster spot for Jerome.
After the Warriors’ win over the Houston Rockets on Monday night, Steve Kerr name-dropped Jordan Poole and Stephen Curry, noting that the Warriors are saving Jerome for a night where one of those two has to sit out.
“Ty – he’s really a guy who’s a proven NBA player. And so, we’re not going to have him play in the G League,” Kerr said via the NBA Interviews YouTube channel. “We’re going to save his- he’s got three NBA games left on his two-way contract. So, we’re going to save him for a rainy day. If Steph or Jordan has to miss a game, we’ll need Ty. So, we’re going to hang on to those games.”
NBA two-way players can only appear in 50 NBA games during the regular season and are ineligible for the postseason. Jerome only has three games remaining, so Golden State is saving those games.
As for Poole, he struggled with his shot in the Warriors’ win over Houston on Monday. The Warriors guard finished the game with five points, two rebounds, and eight assists on 1-of-8 shooting from the field and 1-of-6 shooting from behind the three-point line.
Stephen Curry Sounds Off on Klay Thompson
While Poole didn’t shoot particularly well against Houston, Klay Thompson was on fire. He scored 29 points, and after the game, Curry gave him credit for hitting a big shot late in the game.
“Having 14 turnovers in the first half was rough,” Curry said via the NBA Interviews YouTube channel. “We could never really create enough separation. And then [in the] second half, we were a little bit more mindful. I think we only had four turnovers and got decent shots. We didn’t make as many as we wanted to, but we got stops. Ran in transition. Played pretty disciplined. They made a little run. We got a little sloppy for two minutes there down the stretch but got back to good offense [and] connecting the game. Klay hits a big shot. And somebody else hit a shot. But it was just mindful basketball that we needed to finish strong.”
Steve Kerr Sounds Off on Stephen Curry
Golden State lost to the Memphis Grizzlies on Saturday night, and Curry struggled with his shot. After the game, Kerr spoke about what went wrong for the star point guard.
“I thought the schedule kind of caught up a little bit to Steph,” Kerr said via the NBA Interviews YouTube channel. “Back-to-back. I think [it was the] third [game] in four nights. A lot of travel. The first game he’s had since he’s been back that he didn’t shoot well. And [Dillon] Brooks did a good job defensively. But all in all, it felt like Steph’s legs just weren’t quite there tonight. And it’s going to happen. At 35, there are going to be some nights where, especially on a back-to-back with a lot of travel involved, flying across the country, all that stuff, sometimes it catches up to you when you’re a little older. But he’ll be fine.”