Washington Wizards guard Jordan Poole. Jayne Kamin-Oncea-USA TODAY Sports

Former NBA All-Star believes Jordan Poole is destined to be a bench player

By Adam Taylor | Last updated 3/10/24

Jordan Poole has struggled in his first year as a lead guard for the Washington Wizards.

Poole, 24, spent his first four years in the league with the Golden State Warriors, where his minutes were mixed between the bench unit and the starters. However, he was always situated as an off-ball threat due to the presence of Steph Curry and Klay Thompson. That hasn't been the case in Washington, and the results have been far from encouraging.

According to Gilbert Arenas, Poole's struggles this season have proven that he's better suited to a bench role. The former NBA guard believes that teams will now be reluctant to give Poole significant minutes as a starter for the rest of his career.

“It’s horrible though because he done sealed his fate. You forever bench player. You done sealed it,” Arenas said on Friday's episode of Gil's Arena. "Your contract is for a few years, so you might have to sacrifice this year to prove that you better a starter than a bench player. You done prove that your role, your impact is bench."

Poole has played 61 games for the Wizards this season. He's averaging 16.7 points, 2.6 rebounds and 3.8 assists on 40.6% shooting from the field and 31.5% shooting from three-point range. Those numbers are far below what many expected from the 2022 NBA champion. He was supposed to be unleashed with the ball in his hands and help propel the Wizard's rebuilding efforts after moving on from Bradley Beal and Kristaps Porzingis this summer.

With another three years left on his $128 million contract, Poole's tenure in the NBA is secure. However, it's unlikely we'll see him continue to comprise a starting role. This season was a chance for him to show the world that he was being shackled by the Warriors coaching staff due to the presence of two Hall of Fame talents. Instead, it would appear his success came because of them, not in spite of them.

It will be interesting to see how the Wizards approach this summer. If they can find a veteran ball-handler, Poole's time as a starter could be over. However, as a rebuilding team, they may wait to see if he can bounce back from a tough season after having a summer to work on his game.

Either way, Poole needs to start showing he can run a team's offense. Otherwise, his role in Golden State will be the one he's destined to play for the rest of his career.

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