Jordan Poole
Jordan Anthony Poole (born June 19, 1999) is an American professional basketball player for the Golden State Warriors of the National Basketball Association (NBA). He attended Rufus King High School in Milwaukee and La Lumiere School in La Porte, Indiana. He was a 2016 first team All-Wisconsin selection as a junior and a member of the 2017 Dick's National High School Championship winner as a senior. Poole then played college basketball for the Michigan Wolverines. At Michigan, he was a member of the 2017–18 team that won the 2018 Big Ten Tournament and advanced to that  season's National Championship Game. He is known for making a game-winning buzzer beater three-point shot in the second round of the 2018 tournament, allowing Michigan to advance to the Sweet Sixteen round. Poole led the NBA in free throw percentage for the 2021–22 NBA season. High school career. As a freshman at Rufus King High School in Wisconsin, Poole once made a game-tying three-point shot in the closing seconds after coming off the bench. Poole visited Illinois, Wisconsin, Indiana, Drake and Marquette as a blue chip high school basketball recruit. Then, he visited Michigan for  the September 26 football game between the 2015 Wolverines and BYU, receiving an offer that weekend. He returned to campus on October 17 for the rivalry game against Michigan State. On October 23, 2015, four-star recruit Poole became the first commitment for the Class of 2017 after a home gym visit from head coach John Beilein and assistant coach LaVall Jordan and multiple Michigan campus visits. Poole had several competing offers including Illinois, Indiana, Nebraska, Memphis, Marquette, Virginia Tech and Auburn. At the time of his commitment, he was the 2nd-ranked overall prospect and the 1st-ranked shooting  guard in the national class of 2017. As a junior, Poole was a 2016 WBCA All-State Boys Basketball first team selection. On July 1, 2016, Poole announced that he would transfer from Rufus King to La Lumiere School in Indiana for his senior year, where he would experience a campus lifestyle, play a schedule with several ESPN broadcasts, and be teamed up with then-unsigned class of 2017 prospects Brian Bowen and Jeremiah Tilmon. By the time Poole signed his National Letter of Intent to play college basketball for Michigan as part of a three-scholarship player incoming class  with Isaiah Livers and Eli Brooks on November 11, 2016, he was the 90th ranked overall prospect. Poole was a member of the 2017 Dick's National High School Champion La Lumiere team. In the Dick's National Championship game, Poole posted 13 points, 3 steals, 3 rebounds and 4 assists, and shot 3–7 on his three-point shots. The 13 points included a shot clock buzzer beater in the closing seconds of the third quarter. La Lumiere, which included 2017 McDonald's All-Americans Bowen and Jaren Jackson Jr., defeated perennial power Montverde Academy, who was led by Canadian  sophomore R. J. Barrett. La Lumiere had lost the 2016 Dick National Championship game prior to Poole's arrival. College career. Freshman season. On December 2, Michigan defeated Indiana 69–55 in its 2017–18 Big Ten conference season opener with Poole leading the way with a team- and then career-high 19 points in his Big Ten debut. On January 15, Michigan defeated Maryland 68–67. After trailing by 14 points in the first half and 10 points at halftime, Michigan was trailing by 7 points in the second half when they made 7 consecutive three-point shots, including three by Poole  whose 11 points made him one of only two double digit scorers for Michigan in the game. For the February 3 contest against Minnesota, the Maize Rage (Michigan's student section) held a "Poole party" in the stands, but Poole missed all four of his field goal attempts. Poole finished the regular season with three straight double digit scoring efforts, making 9 of 12 three-point shots against (#8 AP Poll/#9 Coaches Poll) Ohio State on February 18, Penn State on February 21, and Maryland on February 24. On March 4, a victory over (#8 AP Poll/#8 Coaches Poll) Purdue  gave Michigan its second consecutive Big Ten Tournament championship since the game was the championship game of the 2018 Big Ten Conference Men's Basketball Tournament, even though Poole slumped during the 4-game run, missing all 9 of his three-point shots. On March 17, 2018, Michigan defeated (#21 AP Poll/#19 Coaches Poll) Houston 64–63 in the second round of the 2018 NCAA Tournament, following a game-winning buzzer beater three-point shot by Poole, giving Michigan its fourth Sweet 16 in six years. The shot was described as nearly identical to the buzzer beater he had made a  year earlier in the Dick's National Championship game. Poole finished the game with 8 points and 2 rebounds, but his only field goal attempt in his four minutes of play in the second half was the game-winner. The play began with Michigan trailing by two points with 3.6 seconds remaining in the game and Isaiah Livers passing the ball from under the opposite basket to Muhammad-Ali Abdur-Rahkman near midcourt. After two dribbles Abdur-Rahkman threw the ball to Poole with 2 seconds left. The term "Poole party" was widely used in the press as a play  on words to describe the celebration of Poole's heroic shot. In the March 31, 2018, national semifinal against Loyola–Chicago Poole had seven points, including the free throws that put the team the ahead for good after rallying back from a 10-point second half deficit. The team lost in the 2018 NCAA Division I Men's Basketball Championship Game to (#2 Coaches Poll/#2 AP Poll) Villanova. Sophomore season. On November 17, 2018, Poole's career-high 22 points helped Michigan defeat George Washington 84–61. On November 28, Michigan defeated (#11/#13) North Carolina 84–67 in the ACC–Big Ten  Challenge, as Poole contributed 18 points, including 5-for-8 three point shooting. On December 1, Michigan defeated (#19/#18) Purdue 76–57 in its Big Ten Conference season opener. Michigan was led by Poole with a game-high 21 points, including 5-for-5 from three-point range. On December 3, Poole was recognized as Big Ten Player of the Week for his performance against these two ranked teams. On December 8, Michigan defeated South Carolina 89–78. Michigan was led by Poole with a career-high 26 points. On December 30, Michigan defeated Binghamton 74–52. Poole posted 18 points, including a career-high  six three-pointers. On January 13, the 2018–19 Wolverines team defeated Northwestern to establish a school record for best start at 17–0 and tied the school's record 17-game win streak. Following the season, he was a 2019 All-Big Ten honorable mention selection (coaches and media). On March 23, Michigan defeated Florida 64–49 in the second round of the 2019 NCAA Division I Men's Basketball Tournament. Michigan was led by Poole with a game-high 19 points earning its third consecutive the Sweet 16 appearance and second consecutive one keyed by Poole. Following the season, on April  9, 2019, Poole (along with teammates Iggy Brazdeikis and Charles Matthews) declared for the 2019 NBA draft with the intention of hiring agents. Professional career. Golden State Warriors (2019–present). On June 20, 2019, Poole was drafted 28th overall in the first round of the 2019 NBA draft by the Golden State Warriors. His guaranteed contract was $6.2 million over three years. On July 11, the Warriors signed Poole to his rookie scale contract. In the Warriors opening game of the 2019–20 season on October 24, Poole made his debut in NBA, coming off from bench in a 122–141  loss to the Los Angeles Clippers with five points, two rebounds, two assists and a steal. On October 29, he made his first NBA start for the Warriors against the Pelicans scoring 13 points in the Warriors first win of the season. In December 2019, Poole was assigned to the Santa Cruz Warriors of the NBA G-League. In his first game there, he scored 23 points against the Stockton Kings. In his second game, he made five three pointers in a loss against the Texas Legends, scoring 31 points and posting five rebounds, four assists and three steals. In  January 2020, Poole got called back to return to the Golden State Warriors lineup. On January 18, Poole scored a then career-high 21 points in a 109–95 win against the Orlando Magic. Starting shooting guard Klay Thompson would miss the entire season for the 2020–21 Warriors. On March 4, 2021, Poole set a then career-high 26 points in a 120–98 loss to the Phoenix Suns. On May 14, Poole posted a career-high 38 points in a 125–122 win over the New Orleans Pelicans. The Warriors used several shooting guards during the season and closed the 2020–21 NBA  season with Kent Bazemore, Mychal Mulder, Damion Lee, and Kelly Oubre Jr. all in the picture. Poole beat out Otto Porter Jr. and Lee for the 2021–22 Warriors' starting shooting guard spot, while Thompson continued to recover. On November 21, 2021, Poole scored 33 points on a career-high 8 three-pointers made in a 119–104 win over the Toronto Raptors. With the return of Klay Thompson from injury to the starting line-up in January 2022 Poole began to split time at both the point guard and shooting guard positions. With teammate Steph Curry sidelined late in the season , Poole scored 20 or more points in 18 of the final 20 games. Poole (92.5%) edged out Curry (92.3%) as the NBA annual free throw percentage leader. It was the first time in 45 years that teammates finished in the top two positions. On the final day he went 4-for-4 to hold on to the lead, ending the season with 28 consecutive free throws made. Poole was not one of the three official finalists (Ja Morant, Darius Garland, and Dejounte Murray) for the NBA Most Improved Player Award, and finished fourth in the balloting (although he finished third in  first place votes). On April 16, in Game 1 of the first round of the 2022 NBA playoffs, he started and scored 30 points in a 123–107 win over the Denver Nuggets. The game was Poole's first career postseason appearance. Two days later, in Game 2, he posted 29 points and eight assists in a 126–106 win. Player profile. Although criticized when entering the league for his lack of polish, Poole has developed into a dynamic and efficient scorer throughout his tenure with the Warriors. In addition to his shooting ability, Poole is a prolific finisher at the rim , frequently slashing to the basket using his ball-handling skills and speed while being a proficient mid-range shot creator. Poole's improvement in his all-around game has led to him becoming a capable passer, averaging a career-high 4.0 assists per game during his third season in a combo guard role. His combination of abilities has drawn comparisons to Warriors teammate Stephen Curry. Personal life. Poole is the son of Monet and Anthony Poole. Poole has an older brother who attended Marquette. He also has a sister.