The Washington Wizards underwent a radical change in the offseason. They fired general manager Tommy Sheppard and replaced him with Michael Winger. Winger wasted no time revamping the roster. He traded Bradley Beal to the Phoenix Suns and Kristaps Porzingis to the Boston Celtics. With the roster revamp, the Wizards have a few players on the team in line for a potential breakout season. Perhaps the top candidate to have a breakout season is Jordan Poole.
Jordan Poole could have breakout season
Jordan Poole was acquired by the Wizards ahead of this season in exchange for Chris Paul. He was an integral piece of the Golden State Warriors 2022 championship team, but this past year he never was really able to develop a consistent rhythm. Some of it may have stemmed from his 2022 preseason dustup with Draymond Green, but it seemed like Poole's time with the Warriors was coming to a close.
Even though Poole was never really able to find his groove with the Warriors last season, he still averaged a career-high 20.4 points per game. He also averaged a career-high 4.5 assists per game. It was his shooting numbers that were down from 44.8 percent to 43 percent shooting from the field and 36.4 percent to 33.6 percent from the three-point line.
His shot attempts went up from 13.9 to 15.6 and his three-point attempts were relatively the same from 7.6 to 7.8.
Jordan Poole is now coming to a Wizards team that is going to be in need of a primary scoring option this season. They do have Kyle Kuzma, but Kuzma's never really been that type of player who comes across as being able to be a primary offensive option for a team. Kuzma may end up being the Wizards second scoring option this season, however.
But the pathway is there for Poole to step in and become the Wizards go-to guy this season. Poole already has some experience a being the lead scoring option last season with the Warriors. According to StatMuse, in the games that Stephen Curry missed and Poole was in the starting lineup, he averaged 26.1 points per game. His efficiency dropped though to only 41.9 percent shooting from the filed and 31.1 percent from the three-point line.
His efficiency numbers are likely due to him never being a number one option like that before. What also should Poole's efficiency is he's going to be playing alongside a very good playmaking guard in Tyus Jones. Jones is actually another candidate for a breakout player for the Wizards. Poole is going to have the ball in his hands a lot this upcoming season but he and Jones should be the starting backcourt. When Jones is on ball, Poole will have the freedom to move and allow Jones to feed him the ball.
Aside from the number of shots and opportunities Poole will have with the Wizards, he's also coming in with a chip on his shoulder. He has something to prove, and that's to show the doubters that he's capable of being an efficient scoring option in the NBA. In a way, playing behind Steph Curry and Klay Thompson was hindering Poole's development. He had a strong Finals showing in 2022 and he came to camp last season being asked to sacrifice.
Poole is only 24 years old and is still has another level he can reach. It's not out of the question to imagine Jordan Poole as one of the NBA's scoring leaders this upcoming season.
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