Last week, The Golden State Warriors pulled the trigger on a move that a large part of the fanbase had been clamoring for. They traded Jordan Poole away to the Washington Wizards in a move that netted them Chris Paul.
In the days following the blockbuster trade, head coach Steve Kerr opened up about the move, during an interview with The Athletic’s Tim Kawakami. He revealed that he felt it was a “very positive shift” for the team after a difficult season.
“We’re going to be a lot different. The last thing I’m going to do is say anything about a team that just won a championship a year ago and then fought through a difficult season. Made a helluva run at the end of this year. I’ve loved this group that we’ve had the last couple years,” Kerr told Kawakami. “But the biggest point is that we sensed we needed a shift. Didn’t mean we needed an overhaul, but we needed a shift of some sort. I think everybody in the organization sensed that. And it feels like we’ve made a pretty significant shift without giving up our identity and our sense of who we are as a team. I think, all in all, it’s a very positive shift.”
Steve Kerr Believes Draymond Green-Jordan Poole Tension ‘Compromised’ Warriors’ Season
The reason why many Warriors fans wanted to see the 23-year-old go this summer was because of the inconsistent season he put together, after inking a four-year, $128 million contract extension last fall.
Throughout Poole’s rollercoaster 2022-23 season, media members deduced that a lot of Golden State’s issues stemmed from the incident where Draymond Green landed a knockout punch to Poole’s jaw during a preseason practice.
Kerr eventually spilled the truth on the pivotal event after the season came to a close. He explained that the punch “compromised things” for the team.
“[Green] knows that he had a great season this year from a basketball perspective, but he knows that he also compromised things by what happened back in October,” Kerr said during a May 16 media session, per Anthony Slater of The Athletic. “So part of him coming back next year has to be about rebuilding some of that trust and respect that he’s earned here for a long period of time. One thing I love about Draymond is he’s always brutally honest, and he can take that sort of critique because he knows it’s the truth.”
Chris Paul Excited to Join Warriors
Shifting focus to the newest member of the Dubs, Paul, he seems pretty happy to be a part of the team. He voiced those feelings during a recent interview with Lindsay Czarniak.
“I’m excited, I’m grateful like I said,” Paul said of his reaction to the trade. “To get an opportunity to play with that core group of players: Steph, Klay, Draymond, Looney, Wiggs, all of them, play for Steve … So, I definitely want to get on the phone and talk to those guys and whatnot and see what’s what.”
NBA star Chris Paul told me it was a “full circle” moment finding out he was traded to the Golden State Warriors. We sat down for a previously scheduled podcast conversation shortly after the news broke. Appreciate his honesty still processing the news @CP3 #chrispaul #nba
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Steve Kerr Gets Honest About Jordan Poole After Warriors Exit