"They don't care for him" - Stephen A. Smith reckons Jordan Poole needs a 'behaviour' check to avoid riding bench on Wizards
At one point, Jordan Poole was one of the most highly-touted players of the next generation. After playing an integral role in the Golden State Warriors' success during their most recent championship run, Poole signed a massive contract. Since then, and in the time since being traded to Washington, he hasn't played to the same level.
After posting a series of poor performances throughout February, when Jordan Poole and the Washington Wizards returned from the All-Star break, he was benched. As the team fell 130-110 to the Denver Nuggets, Poole, although logging 30 minutes, came off the bench.
Speaking on Friday's episode of "First Take," outspoken TV personality Stephen A. Smith weighed in on the situation. As he explained, while Jordan Poole is a talented player, and was a major contributing factor to the Warriors' latest title win, he may need an attitude adjustment.
"I think that uh Jordan Poole needs to sit down with his family and loved ones and he really really needs to have a personality check. ... you got an abundance of people who want him to fail and you could see it, because he's all alone on the basketball court, they don't care for him.
"Kyle Kuzma, obviously, they don't have a very good team but they just don't care for him. He's got to have a personality transplant and really adjust his behavior."
“It’s really a positive" - Wizards coach Brian Keefe sheds light on Jordan Poole coming off the bench
Jordan Poole has struggled to find his form as of late. As previously mentioned, throughout February, he has posted a series of underwhelming performances.
In the Wizards' February 4 game against the Phoenix Suns for example, Poole went just 1-7 from the floor, two days after a 6-21 shooting night against the Heat. On February 7, he went 0-5 from the floor against the Cleveland Cavaliers, including 0-4 from downtown.
Prior to the All-Star break, Poole's play reached a new low as he shot 1-12 from the field, including 1-6 from downtown, for a total of just three points. While he has struggled this season, recently appointed coach Briaf Keefe sounded off on his decision to bring Poole off the bench ahead of Thursday's game.
As he explained to media members pre-game, he's viewing the decision as a positive one rather than as a punishment of sorts. He was quoted by Yahoo as saying:
“It’s really a positive. It’s actually a credit to Jordan. Jordan’s been one of our highest net ratings since I’ve taken over, and I just want to see more of that. his gives him an opportunity now, being in that unit, to be the lead handler, lead decision-maker, and kind of be our offensive engine."
With the Wizards sitting in 14th place in the East with just nine wins, it will be interesting to see if the decision to bring Poole off the bench pays off.