We all know the Golden State Warriors have salary cap issues and they will go way over it if they decide to re-sign all 3 of Draymmond Green,Andrew Wiggins, and Jordan Poole. Klay Thompson is still 2 seasons away from becoming a free-agent and there are rumors floating around about Draymmond Green looking to possibly pair up with Cade Cunningham and Jaden Ivey in Detroit if the Warriors don’t offer Draymmond a max-contract which could start at 4 years $130 million dollars.
Jordan Poole was exceptional through the first 2 rounds of the 2022 NBA Playoffs and him stepping up his scoring in the Finals was what ultimately made the Warriors too much for the Celtics. He knocked down the half-court 3 and also another 3 pointer which gave the Warriors a 74-72 lead going into the 4th quarter, when he hit that 3 was when I told myself this series is over. Looking at the Orlando Magic they have been a team who has practically been rebuilding since Dwight Howard left for Los Angeles, they had their moments with Victor Oladipo but it’s been mediocrity ever since practically.
They finally got a franchise player this past draft, I won’t promote Paolo Banchero as the next Carmelo Anthony/Kevin Durant hybrid but the kid is going to be a flat out star in the NBA for years to come. Cole Anthony,Markelle Fultz, Jalen Suggs,Mo Bamba,Jonathan Isaac,Chuma Okeke,Franz Wagner,Jonathan Isaac, and Terrence Ross is not a bad core for Paolo Banchero to work with this coming season. The Magic will turn some heads and Banchero will be right behind all of it, stealing Jordan Poole away from the Warriodz should be their main objective.
At the end of the day the NBA is a business, we saw Gary Payton II take a 3 year $26 million deal from the Portland Trailblazers and Otto Porter Jr took a 2-year deal from the Toronto Raptors both signings I did not expect. Otto and Gary played big roles off the bench for the Warriors these past playoffs and made a ton of timely shots and defensive plays yet neither was going to be able to demand the sort of money Poole will be a blessing to fetch next summer in free-agency. The Magic will have all the money he desires and if you are Jordan Poole why would you take $80-100 million from the Warriors when the Magic could offer you the same amount of years and an extra $30-40 million?
Jordan Poole struggled his first season, he was demoted to the G-League due to his inconsistency and was lights out the remainder of the 2020-2021 season. He’s been around Steph Curry and has incorporated his off the ball movement and made himself a deadly shooter coming off the baseline. Watching Poole is like watching Curry with a sprinkle of Irving being that Poole is able to knock you off your shoes with his zig-zagging and euro steps through traffic. Maybe Poole sacrifices the money for a shot at more rings with Curry but he’ll always be in his shadow no matter what he does, Jordan Poole deserves his own stage and he would make the perfect running mate for future Magic legend Banchero. Poole and Banchero could make some magic happen in Orlando together much like Penny and Shaq did in the 90’s, till next time.
D-NBA 