Wolverines in the NBA: Jordan Poole spark, wild buzzer-beater help put Golden State Warriors one win away from title
Former Michigan Wolverines basketball guard Jordan Poole is making a significant impact on the biggest stage. The third-year pro’s Golden State Warriors are one win away from winning the NBA Finals over the Boston Celtics, thanks in no small part to Poole’s contributions.
After a rough Game 1, Poole has scored in double figures each of the last four games for the Warriors, who are up 3-2 heading into a potential series-clinching Game 6 in Boston Thursday night (9 p.m. ET on ABC). Coming off the bench, the 6-4, 194-pounder has been the leader of Golden State’s second team, which was a big reason why the squad was able to pull off the 104-94 home victory Monday night. He put up 14 points in just 14 minutes, shooting 4-of-8 from the field and 3-of-6 from long range in Game 5.
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Perhaps the highlight of the entire game was the former Michigan guard’s banked-in deep three-pointer at the third-quarter buzzer to give the Warriors a 75-74 lead. They never gave up the edge, dominating the fourth quarter and winning by 10 points.
“That was a crucial part of the game for us to respond to that,” Warriors head coach Steve Kerr said of his team’s late-third quarter run. “Jordan hit a couple big ones late third and then had a good stretch to start the fourth as well. But the response to Boston’s run to me was the key to the game.”
“Jordan hitting that shot right before the clock expired was a great momentum boost for us,” Warriors forward Draymond Green said.
“Jordan Poole was clutch tonight,” teammate Klay Thompson added.
“The coaching staff is kind of giving me the keys to go out there and be extremely aggressive and hunt my shot,” Poole added.
And it was crucial, given star guard Steph Curry wasn’t playing up to his normal standards. For the first time since 2018, Curry went a game without making a three-pointer. Poole was one of five Warriors to score in double figures.
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For Poole, the buzzer beater was nothing new. He famously hit a long one against Houston in the 2018 NCAA Tournament, sending Michigan to the Sweet 16, and nailed another at the end of the third quarter in Game 2.
“As for the shots, end of shot clock or ends of quarters, I always want those and my teammates look for me on those,” Poole said. “The sliders kind of go up as the clock goes down. Continue to be aggressive and look for my shot and just be the moment, I guess.”
For the series, Poole is averaging 12.8 points, 1.8 assists and 1.6 rebounds per game, while shooting 43.5 percent from the field and 35.8 percent from long range. He scored 14 points with six made shots on 13 attempts in a Game 4 win, and put up 10 points (4-of-8 from the field) in a Game 3 setback.
Nik Stauskas appears in four NBA Finals games
Joining Vanderbilt and Florida, Michigan is one of three schools to have multiple players in the NBA Finals. Former U-M guard Nik Stauskas is a reserve for the Celtics but has appeared in four of five games to this point.
Stauskas has totaled eight minutes in four appearances. He hit a three-pointer and added three rebounds and one assist in Game 2, his only statistics from the series.
