Celtics legend dishes harsh reality check on Wizards guard Jordan Poole
After four years as a secondary option in Golden State, Jordan Poole was eager to transition into a leading role with the Washington Wizards this season. Poole recently confirmed to Jake Fischer of Yahoo Sports that he "obviously" wanted to be in a position to have his own team.
As Boston Celtics legend Paul Pierce highlighted on Monday, be careful what you wish for.
Despite averaging 16.2 PPG over his first 10 games with the Wizards, Poole is shooting just 41.2% from the field and 30.3% from beyond the arc. His recent four-game slump has seen him connect on 20-of-54 field goal attempts, with the Wizards going 1-3 during that span.
Perceived from the outside looking in as a future cornerstone in the post-Bradley Beal era, Poole may quickly be playing himself out of Washington's long-term plans — that's if he was ever in them in the first place.
Speaking with numerous league observers, NBA insider Marc Stein gets the sense that the Wizards may have initially acquired Poole this summer in hopes of rebuilding his trade value to then move him.
Any hope of rebuilding Poole's value has hit a standstill early in his D.C. tenure. Washington currently sits in second to last place in the East and owns an abysmal -21.7 net rating with Poole on the court. That type of on-court inefficiency, paired with a contract worth $95.5M over the next three years, makes the former NBA champion a difficult trade chip to flip.
While he's more than capable of scoring in bunches, Poole looks more like a player moonlighting as a go-to option rather than one truly suited for the role.
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