Golden State might be regretting letting Jordan Poole go, it just took a year

Ahead of the 2023-24 season, the Golden State Warriors made a major trade, shipping Jordan Poole, a protected first-round pick in 2030, and other assets to the Washington Wizards in exchange for Chris Paul. Acquiring a veteran like Paul was a nice get for Golden State, but the point of this deal was pretty clearly to clear Poole's contract. He was set to begin a four-year deal worth $128 million once that 2023-24 season got started.

The first year of this Poole trade looked like a massive Warriors win. Sure, Paul might not have been that important of an addition in hindsight, and the Warriors even missed the playoffs, but clearing Poole's salary alone was a win, considering how he played in Washington.

Despite a major opportunity to establish himself as a key piece of Washington's organization, Poole averaged just 17.4 points per game in 30.1 minutes per game, and saw his efficiency fall off dramatically. It got so bad to the point where Poole wound up appearing off the bench in 12 of his 78 appearances despite that Wizards team lacking talent.

Fast forward to the 2024-25 season, and the tides of this trade have shifted dramatically. Paul is gone, and the Warriors do enter their matchup on Monday against Poole's Wizards with a 5-1 record, but the start Poole has gotten off to this season has to have Golden State regretting the deal, at least a little bit.

Subscribe to The Whiteboard, FanSided’s daily email newsletter on everything basketball. If you like The Whiteboard, share it with a friend! If you don’t like The Whiteboard, share it with an enemy.

Jordan Poole might be making the Warriors regret trading him after all

Despite playing on arguably the least-talented team in the NBA, the 25-year-old has taken his game to a level we haven't seen in his six NBA seasons. He enters this game against the Warriors averaging 22.2 points per game on 46.4/51.2/94.4 splits to go along with 5.4 assists and a league-leading 2.8 steals per contest. He has, in several ways, had the best start to a season he ever has.

Sure, part of his statistics jump has to do with the opportunity he's being given. Still, he's shooting 46.2 percent from the field (career-high) and 51.2 percent from three-point range (on 8.6 attempts!) His 64.6 true-shooting percentage is a career-best by a wide margin as well. He has taken better shots and has been more efficient than anyone ever thought he could be.

Perhaps the most impressive part of Poole's breakout, though, has been his defense. Again, he's leading the league, averaging 2.8 steals per game. Steals don't always tell the whole story, but considering his previous reputation as a bad defender, it's good to see Poole involved on that side of the ball. 2.8 steals per game don't happen by accident.

A five-game sample size is about as small as any you can look at, but this looks like a different player. If Poole continues to play at or close to this level, the Warriors might slowly start to regret trading him, which is crazy to say after it felt like a such a slam dunk last season. At just 25 years of age, Poole might have even more room to grow, as well.