How JP believes championship run impacted young Warriors

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The Warriors’ future is bright, and it isn’t because their home is in the sunny Golden State.

It’s in thanks in part to the eager group of talented youngsters on their roster who, after receiving their first taste of a championship upon winning the 2022 NBA Finals, will return to the court next season hungry for another shot at glory.

Most young players don’t get to experience the bright lights and flare of the Finals so soon, but the now 23-year-old Jordan Poole, whose birthday is Sunday, was in the center of it all.

So were 19-year-old Jonathan Kuminga and 20-year-old Moses Moody, who both saw some key playoff minutes leading up to the Finals, as well as 21-year-old James Wiseman, who was able to take it all in with his team despite being injured.

While “Kid Splash” saw more time on the court against the Boston Celtics than his rookie teammates in the Finals and throughout the postseason, he explained to reporters on Saturday how the experience will impact all of their careers moving forward.

“Especially for the younger guys, it feels really good to be able to get a ring so early,” Poole said. “A lot of players search their entire careers for rings. Being able just to go in James’ second year and I think JK is the second-youngest player to ever win the Finals, that’s nuts.

“It’s really good to get that experience under our belt, being able just to feel the energy on the road, at home, how important plays matter.”

Of course, it doesn’t hurt a player’s chances of earning an early ring when they get to start their career with Golden State veterans like Steph Curry, Klay Thompson, Draymond Green and Andre Iguodala. Their impact on Poole and the other young players was immeasurable, he said.

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“Being able to witness guys like Andre and Steph who are telling us things to say when it’s four minutes left in the fourth quarter,” Poole continued. “All the really, really small things are going to play a huge role and a pivotal role for our future.”

And now, Poole, Kuminga, Moody and Wiseman will look to take the valuable lessons they learned about what it takes to not only make it to the Finals, but to win it all, into next season.

“We all want to get back, and we’ve got the experience to get the ball rolling and keep it going,” Poole said.

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