The Golden State Warriors came up short in Game 1 of the Western Conference Semifinals despite using a 14-0 run from being down 112-98 to trying it up 112-112. The Warriors relied on a 30-foot shot attempt from Jordan Poole, who was 6-10 from deep, before letting this one fly. The Lakers won 117-112, sparking many around the NBA to discuss Poole’s shot.
“I thought Jordan did a really good job,” Warriors coach Steve Kerr said of Poole’s shot. “I have the timeout stuff, I saw them double-teaming Steph at half court, so I knew somebody was going to be wide-open if we could just get the ball out, and Steph did a great job. He got the ball out of the trap and Jordan was wide-open, and pretty good look, and you know, that’s a shot he can hit.”
With the flow of the possession leading to a deep but still open look for Poole, Curry viewed the process that led to the shot as being the correct one. With the play beginning with Curry getting trapped near half-court, he gave it up to Draymond Green, who then found Poole to step into the shot attempt and get it off.
“It was a shot he was open and flowing,” Curry said of Poole. “Considering how they guard us on that possession, you know, trapping me at the half court, Draymond swinging it over to him, it’s kind of an in-rhythm shot.
“I’m sure he felt pretty good about it. That’s why he shot it. There are no kind of regrets about that. It’s just a make-or-miss type situation and a lot of trust in him and his ability to put the ball in the basket.”
NBA NEWS & PLAYOFFS: Jordan Poole, Golden State Warriors & Los Angeles Lakers Updates
Curry isn’t focused on a missed late-game shot at the start of a series. Instead, he sees the importance of the Warriors emphasizing the nuances of the game that add up throughout a 48-minute effort, like rebounding and getting a stop.
“If we can rebound, going small is to our advantage,” Curry said. “There’s probably three, four possessions where you can see we got a stop, we got the rebound, we got the push. Somebody was open. That’s kind of how we like to play.”
NBA NEWS & PLAYOFFS: Jordan Poole, Golden State Warriors & Los Angeles Lakers Updates
The Warriors will have a chance to tie the series against the Lakers with a win in Game 2 on Thursday. Otherwise, they will head to Los Angeles for Games 3 and 4 with a 2-0 series deficit.
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