NBA WESTERN CONFERENCE FINALS: MAVERICKS VS. WARRIORS

May 26, 2022

Jordan Poole

Golden State Warriors

Game 5: Postgame

Warriors 120, Mavericks 110

Q. Jordan, how would you describe your emotions at this point? What does it mean for you to be here?

JORDAN POOLE: Extremely excited. Really special moment. We worked all season for this, long season. A lot of highs, some lows. Being able to, you know, win the Western Conference with this group of guys is special.

Q. Jordan, on the technical foul free throw, did you and Steph talk that over?

JORDAN POOLE: Yeah.

Q. How did that go?

JORDAN POOLE: Steph said he wanted the free throw. There are very few moments, if ever, that I'm passing up a free throw. If it's to anybody, it's to him, so...

He's a Western Conference Finals MVP, I guess I can give him a free throw (smiling).

Q. You've been here the last three seasons. Started basically at the bottom. Worst record in the league. Back to this moment. As a young player, watching the franchise come back, what has Steph's daily presence meant to you guys?

JORDAN POOLE: Everything. But what makes it so special is that it's also everybody. You know, it's not just Steph. It's Andre, it's Draymond, it's Klay, it's Loon. Even adding the vets this year who just had basketball experience. In my short three years, this team is extremely special. Not even on the court, but off the court, the chemistry that we've had. Being able to just be with this group, it's a lot of fun.

Q. You said you'd be asking the veterans a ton of questions in those Playoffs. Now that you're in the Finals, what is some advice you've gotten that you think has paid off?

JORDAN POOLE: Hmm... I mean, it's all new. It's a new experience. Will be a lot of adjustments. Just the little nuances, whether it's defensive coverages or timing to score, play calls, how repetitive or how consistent. Just little things like that. Pace.

It's one thing to do it during the season, through the 82-game season, but being able to do it in a series when you're playing a team up to seven times, playing four games, things change. Being able to adapt is something truly special that a lot of the guys have told me.

Q. When you got here, this franchise was in a completely different place. Not a lot of people thought they could get back here. Could you see how you fit personally, how you developed, you could be such a big part of a team getting back to the Finals?

JORDAN POOLE: Yeah, from day one, just being able to put my imprint on the team in a positive way, whether it was in the locker room or on the court, asking questions and finding ways to fit in and learn. Really thrived by being myself, you know, alongside these vets, basketball greats, from the coaching staff all the way to the players.

Feels really good to be able to go out there and make an impact, know that I'm helping my team win at the highest level. But I wouldn't be able to do any of this without my teammates.

Q. What has this Playoff run taught you about sacrifice for the betterment of the team?

JORDAN POOLE: Ultimately it's about winning. When you get to the Playoffs, that's all that really matters. There's going to be good games, bad games, close to perfect games, games that you just got to scratch up and chalk up. Just staying with it, being able to go out there and fight, get into that war with the guys beside you. There's no better feeling.

Q. For most of your time here, Klay has been kind of behind the scenes, working to get back, rehabbing. From your vantage point, what did you see as he worked his way back to the point where he could get on the court with you guys and play ball like the last four months?

JORDAN POOLE: I mean, it's Klay. It's Klay Thompson. Even though he was out for a couple years, that didn't change who he was. If anything, he came back stronger mentally. When he came back, he became a vet. Now he has younger guys looking up to him, watching his every step. Especially me personally, you know, being able just to talk to him, pick his brain, to see how mentally strong he is, he can just come in and make an impact on both sides of the ball.

Extremely happy for him. His perseverance, his mental toughness, it's insane. Being able to have somebody you can look up to every single day, work out with him, text him, call him, hang out with him, not too many things I can say how I feel. I'm so happy for him.

Q. You were here the two years that it wasn't very good. How did the bar change, the expectation change, inside once everybody got healthy and everybody was back?

JORDAN POOLE: I think what makes that special is we always knew we had championship DNA. Maybe the pieces didn't fit at first, the first two years. You can tell that was the core. Everything we did from practice to preparation was all championship-based. These guys have so much experience, so much knowledge that they're willing to share, it really helps.

Even though the two years were tough, I mean, it obviously built up to this. We're just now seeing almost everybody be healthy in the Playoffs. Essentially it's a new team.

But I don't know, y'all are asking a lot of questions, but I'm just excited (smiling).