Steve Kerr defends ex-Warriors star Jordan Poole: ‘I hate that he gets any criticism’

The Golden State Warriors began the 2022-23 season with hopes of defending their NBA title. But an altercation between Draymond Green and Jordan Poole brought the team unwanted attention.

The Warriors never seemed to shake the impact of Green’s now-infamous punch of Poole. Although the team had a relatively successful season, it did not regain its championship form.

The Warriors traded Poole to the Washington Wizards during the offseason and hope to replace his on-court production with veteran guard Chris Paul. 

Many placed blame for the Warriors’ struggles at the feet of Poole, but head coach Steve Kerr isn’t blaming Poole.

“First of all, I think it’s unfair for people to just point at Jordan [Poole],” Kerr said on Bay Area sports radio station 95.7 The Game. “That’s wrong.. .. Jordan was fantastic while he was here. He helped us win a championship. I hate that he gets any criticism. Last year went wrong for a number of reasons, and we all share the blame in that.”

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Green recently shared his thoughts on what went wrong last season, saying the team’s lack of overall chemistry contributed to the disappointing results.  

“Last year, we had an awful team as far as chemistry goes — pathetic,” Green said Thursday. “You look at last year and say, ‘Ah man, this team hasn’t lost a Western Conference series under Steve Kerr.’ And then it happens. The big reason why is our chemistry sucked.”

Although it’s only a small sample size, the Warriors do not seem to have chemistry-related issues this year. The team has gotten off to a 5-1 start.

Paul is averaging just under 30 minutes per game, while superstar guard Steph Curry is having another prolific offensive season averaging 30.8 points per game.

Poole won an NBA title during his stint In Golden State and at times carried the team during its 2022 championship run.

Poole addressed the incident with Green after the season.

“I don’t speak on it much. But I will say … you’ve got to have a different level of maturity. We had a season to play.” Poole told ESPN in May. “You’re going to have to play with these people in the locker room, and that’s why I said maturity is a big thing.”