Getty Jordan Poole of the Golden State Warriors.
The Golden State Warriors have had a rough season. After winning the NBA Championship last season, they faltered in multiple areas this year. They struggled mightily on the road, and their bench unit failed to match the same success it had in years prior.
On Sunday afternoon, they absolutely dominated the Portland Trail Blazers in their final game of the season. After the contest, head coach Steve Kerr spoke about how impressive and important it was that Jordan Poole and Kevon Looney played all 82 games for the Warriors this season.
“It’s been a rough year in a lot of ways, and they should feel really proud for making it through and fighting through a lot of adversity to get here,” Kerr said via the NBA Interviews YouTube channel. “I also singled out Loon and JP for playing all 82. It’s so difficult to play 82 games in an NBA season with all the bumps and bruises and the various forms of adversity that hit you individually. So, for Jordan and Loon to be there for us every night was just hugely valuable.”
In an NBA where so many players take nights off for load management purposes, Poole and Looney persevered.
Against the Trail Blazers, Poole came in clutch for the Warriors. He finished the game with 21 points, four rebounds, and two assists on 7-of-9 shooting from the field and 4-of-5 shooting from behind the three-point line.
As for Looney, he played well, too. He ended the afternoon with four points, eight rebounds, and four assists on 2-of-4 shooting from the floor.
Stephen Curry Shows Love to Moses Moody
Meanwhile, after the game, Stephen Curry gave credit to Moses Moody for his play, also praising Jonathan Kuminga and Gary Payton II.
“I think these last two games, knowing everybody’s getting reps and there’s a feel-good vibe, that helps,” Curry said via the NBA Interviews YouTube channel. “ You don’t want to grind it out down the stretch against the lineup that they had out there. Nobody wanted to be in that kind of situation. But yeah, for Moses to play 30 minutes, JK played 24, Gary 20, getting their legs underneath them before this week off. Going into our practices so that everybody feels in a nice flow and gets some game experience so that whatever the expectations are, what you’re asked to do, going into a series, everybody’s ready. That definitely helps. We want to have the least stressful path to the start of the playoffs as possible. So, we accomplished that.”
Mike Brown Discusses Warriors Playoff Series
With their win, the Warriors were locked in as the fifth seed in the West, and they will now take on the Sacramento Kings in the first round of the playoffs. When that was finalized, Kings head coach and former Warriors assistant Mike Brown spoke about it.
“Nothing. I mean, it’s a short commute, that’s about it,” Brown said via the Kings’ YouTube channel when asked if facing off against the Warriors meant anything extra. “I’ve still got my place down there, so I may swing down and check on that. That’s about it. It doesn’t matter who we play. Just like I’m sure with the rest of the teams, it doesn’t really matter who they play.
