After helping the Golden State Warriors win an NBA championship, they paid Jordan Poole $128 million over four seasons. Throughout parts of Poole’s time with the Warriors, he proved to be an above-average player, and potentially even an All-Star.
While $128 million for a Poole was undoubtedly a lot, it’s important to remember that he played in 30.0 minutes per night during his final season in Golden State, averaging 20.4 points and showing some promise as a second guard next to Stephen Curry.
Fast forward a few years, and not being on a good team has undoubtedly impacted Poole as a player. So much so that he’s now on the third team since the 2023-24 season, and Ricky O’Donnell of SB Nation believes that’s important in this situation.
O’Donnell named him one of the most overpaid players in the NBA, citing that with the New Orleans Pelicans, he might not be the best fit for them, and the money has a part in that.
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“Poole played a winning role on the Warriors’ 2022 championship team, got paid, then got knocked out by Draymond Green at practice. It’s been all downhill since. Poole actually had a nice bounceback year with a horrible Wizards team last season, returning to form as a three-point shooter (37 percent from deep) while also getting to the foul line more…
“It feels like Poole’s next deal might pay him half as much as the current one does, at least in percentage of the salary cap. He’s a skilled scorer, but not someone who should be heavily counted on,” he wrote.
It might be unfair to suggest that he’s overpaid just because of the team he’s on, but in this scenario, it makes sense. Poole is undoubtedly better with a contender as a second guard, but there are many spots for him to accomplish that.
Factor that, with the remaining two years and $65.8 million, many contenders might not be willing to take on that money.
