Jordan Poole strutted into Little Caesars Arena on Sunday with black sunglasses and a bright yellow Michigan Starter jacket. Starting in place of Klay Thompson (injury management), Poole meant business and entered the building looking to make a statement and put on a show in the Warriors' lone trip to Detroit this season.
It didn't take him long to grab a hold of the spotlight. His 30-point showing also wasn't enough as the Warriors lost the Pistons, 128-114, giving them their first losing streak of the season after falling to the Charlotte Hornets and then the Pistons to open this five-game road trip.
Poole's first two points of the night came in under a minute after the opening tip. He scored six quick points in the first quarter and then was sent to the bench with two fouls. When he returned, Poole went cold, missing his only two shots attempts as the Warriors went 7-for-23 in the second quarter, scoring only 18 points to go into halftime trailing 63-55.
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The Warriors for years now have been known for the third-quarter scoring barrages. This time, it turned into a Poole Party in Motor City.
In a little under 10 minutes of work, Poole poured in 18 points, which was half of the Warriors' 36 as a team. No stretch of his sizzle was more eye-popping and breathtaking than when he drained a 3-pointer to cut Detroit's lead to 13 points, turned on the jets for a steal, took one dribble and splashed another triple from the same exact spot.
Overall, Poole went 6-for-7 from the field and 5-for-6 on 3-pointers in that third quarter.
He singlehandedly put the Warriors back in position to win, going from down by 19 points to six points before entering the fourth quarter in a nine-point hole. Of his 18 points, 12 came in under a minute.
Golden State Warriors
His 18-point effort was one point shy of his career-high for a quarter, and his five threes tied the most he has made in a quarter over his young four-year NBA career.
"Just being aggressive," Poole said after the loss. "Being aggressive. Taking some open shots, just playing my game."
This is the player who grew up before our eyes last season. This is the player who shined in the playoffs, and earned a major contract extension at the conclusion of the offseason. After putting pen to paper, Poole didn't exactly come out firing on all cylinders, though.
Against the Los Angeles Lakers and Denver Nuggets, Poole scored a total of 19 points. Coming off the bench in his Sixth Man role with a much different group of reserves than a season ago, Poole also dished seven assists in both of those games. While Poole's playmaking shined, Steve Kerr admitted he had to find ways to get Poole going offensively.
Since then, he has been scoring in bunches.
Poole in his last five games has averaged 21.2 points, shooting 50 percent from the field and 39.5 percent on 3-pointers.
Come Tuesday against the Heat in Miami, with Thompson back in the starting lineup, Poole will return to his usual role as the catalyst of the second unit. Last season, he did come off the bench once Thompson returned from his injury, but he also started 51 regular-season compared coming off the bench in 25. In the playoffs, he started the first five games before Steph Curry took his spot.
As a starter, Poole averaged 7.1 more points in the regular season compared to his time as a bench player. Poole broke records to kick off his playoff career, and averaged 21 points as a started compared to 15.8 off the bench.
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Throughout the regular season and the playoffs, Poole was the Warriors' second-best offensive player. He should be one of their top scorers on a nightly basis, and perhaps their No. 2 option behind Curry. If he brings the energy and effort that he did the past two games, points will come, as will everything else.
The final result hasn't been what Poole and the rest of the Warriors want to start their road trip. But they were a continuation of Poole heating up and looking as confident as ever.
Finding silver linings isn't easy right now. Watching Poole shine and grow into his star status is one.