Lucrative new contract for Poole as the pair move on
Golden State guard Jordan Poole has opened up about the incident with Draymond Green, where the power forward punched fourth year pro Poole in a practice session, caught on camera and shared with the world by TMZ.
The threat of disharmony in the GSW had many pundits and fans seriously worried about their 2022-23 NBA Championship hopes, and indeed their odds had been fluctuating considerably in the back of the will he won't he that followed.
Will he apologise? (Green). Will he leave? (Poole). Will be be sacked? (Green)
However as Poole revealed in his first public remarks since the 5th October, all is now well in camp Warriors.
We're going to play basketball...we're here to win championships
"He apologized, and we plan on handling ourselves that way, we’re going to play basketball,” Poole said on Sunday 16th. “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.”
Poole wasn't seriously injured despite the video of the punch seeming to show that Green connected with a peach of a right cross after the pair exchanged words and Poole appeared to shove Green.
After a short period away from the squad, Poole, 23 signed a huge $140 million 4-year contract extension with the defending champions, bringing relief to the team, the fans and those sports bettors who have backed them for a repeat.
The Warriors settled back to a respectable 8.00 to lift the Larry O'Brien Championship Trophy again. making them 3rd favourites with sportsbook PlayUp.
Poole and Green are reported to refer to themselves as brothers, with Poole adding (about accepting the apology and moving on) "If I said it, I meant it."
“We’re here to play basketball, and our teammates and the coaching staff and the organization, everybody, knows what it takes to win,” Poole added.
Draymond's in a great spot...he's got options.
Even before the fight, Green wasn't expecting his own extension, and nothing has changed there. GM Bob Myers said: Draymond’s in a great spot. He’s got a player option. It’s a great position for a player to be in. You control your own destiny,”
Myers continued. “I think he’s excited about the year and he wants to win another championship. He sees the opportunity in front of him. I talked to him this morning, I don’t sense any issues there or any problems with that. I imagine he’s going to have a fantastic year, I actually think he will have a great year, he’s got a lot on the line. Usually when Draymond has a lot on the line he performs.”
As for Head Coach Steve Kerr, he believes Poole can be used even more this season after Poole developed into a serious scoring threat from the bench, and with the Warriors also tying Andrew Wiggins to a new deal, things are looking rosy over at Chase Center. Perhaps not as rosy as Jordan Poole's face looked in the immediate aftermath of that punch, but rosy all the same.
NBA Championship Odds courtesy of PlayUp:
Odds correct at time of publishing
