MY ACCOUNT
Klay Thompson was full of praise for Jordan Poole as the Golden State Warriors claimed a 3-0 series lead, defeating the Denver Nuggets 118-113 on Thursday.
Stephen Curry notably played over 30 minutes in the Warriors’ road victory, with the recent three-guard lineup of Curry, Thompson and Poole just proving too much.
After only three playoff games in his career, the 22-year-old Poole is leading the Dubs in scoring over the series with 28.7 points per game.
It is not just volume Poole is scoring at but the efficiency, scoring 27 points on nine-of-13 shooting in Thursday’s win, with Thompson asserting he is vital to Golden State’s NBA title aspirations.
“These three games, I mean, I don’t remember a better start for a playoff debut for a guard,” Thompson said post-game. “It’s incredible what Jordan is doing.
“We need him to go where we want to go, and we need him to keep doing what he’s doing.
Opposition defensive schemes effectively have to pick their poison with two the NBA’s best three-point shooters ever and Poole, who shot at an astounding 58.8 per cent from the perimeter in the opening two games against Denver.
Thompson is well aware of the spacing Golden State’s three-guard lineup provides, but believes it is complemented by Draymond Green and Andrew Wiggins.
“At times, yeah [I feel the space],” Thompson said. “I mean, I had a really good look with like a minute left that I missed – I wish I could get that one back, but that’s okay.
“What a fun night at the office. The ball’s just flying around, and we played great down the stretch on both sides of the ball. When we move the ball and we trust each other, we’ll get open looks.
“We’re all great shooters, and Draymond’s play-making, and Andrew [Wiggins] is a great shooter as well.”
