Getty Jeremy Lin looks on in street clothes during a 2013 game between the Houston Rockets and the Golden State Warriors.
Jeremy Lin saw the lowest point of Jordan Poole’s NBA career, and now he’s happy to celebrate his former G League teammate at his peak.
The two shared time with the Santa Cruz Warriors, the G League affiliate of the Golden State Warriors. Poole, the No. 28 overall pick in the 2019 NBA Draft, was at the edge of the NBA roster at the time he played there and struggling to earn his way into the Warriors rotation.
But Poole returned from the G Leauge a different player, with what one insider called the most dramatic in-season improvement he had ever seen. He jumped into the starting lineup by the end of the 2020-21 season, was a breakout star last year, and now has earned a massive contract extension.
Lin shared some love with Poole this week, congratulating him on all the hard work he put in to get to this point.
Lin Happy for Former Teammate
Poole had several stints in Santa Cruz during his rookie year and through his second season in the NBA, playing alongside the veteran Lin. The 23-year-old has come a long way since then, playing a key role in Golden State’s title run last season while averaging a career-best 18.5 points per game.
Poole was rewarded with a four-year, $140 million contract extension on Sunday, and got a heartfelt note of congratulations from his former teammate. Lin took to Instagram to share a picture of him and Poole on the Santa Cruz Warriors, and in the caption offered some praise for all the hard work that Poole put in along the way.
“Woke up to great news! I dont normally comment on contracts, but this ones different,” Lin wrote. “I went from scrimmaging against @jordan_poole in private Bay Area runs to becoming Gleague teammates to seeing him win a championship to a contract extension.
“Adversity and ‘demotions’ like the GLeague reveal someone’s character. Its not just bc I saw JP beast the GLeague. Its bc I saw him do it with a pure love of the game AND a genuine selflessness to root for his teammates thats compelling me to write this post. A hard-earned, much deserved new deal”
Poole Focused on Warriors Title Defense
It has been a long couple of weeks for Poole, who was thrust into the spotlight after a practice scuffle with teammate Draymond Green. A leaked video showed Poole being punched by Green, who later apologized and took a leave from the team.
Jordan Poole’s new contract has $17 million in incentives. That includes $1 mil per season for MVP and DPOY. So it’s four years, $123 million guaranteed and isn’t likely to stretch much further for a Warriors team counting every dollar.
Full details here
With Green now back with the team and Poole’s future in Golden State set, the 23-year-old said he wants to turn his focus to the team’s title defense.
“He apologized, and we plan on handling it that way, we’re going to play basketball,” Poole said on Sunday, via NBA.com. “Everybody in the locker room and on our team knows what it takes to win a championship and we’re going to do that on the court. That’s really all I have to say on the matter, we’re here to win a championship and keep hanging banners.”