Force Multiplier

A capability that, when added to and employed by a combat force, significantly increases the combat potential of that force and thus enhances the probability of successful mission accomplishment.

Jordan Poole is the Warriors’ force multiplier. They already had the Splash Brothers, and now they have the Poole Boy, or something. (We don’t need to force a nickname, but there’s a joke in there somewhere.) He just makes these guys better, because he (somehow) does what they do.

Seerat Sohi wrote a great story about Poole earlier this season, and included this tidbit:

While Poole may be getting his points like Curry does, his floaters and deep triples aren’t quite as accurate. Their percentages within the paint and midrange are virtually the same, except Poole is 7 percentage points more accurate inside the restricted area. According to Second Spectrum, Poole is in the 76th percentile for drives per 100 possessions; Curry is in the 77th. Curry is in the 93rd percentile for handoffs, and in the 59th for points per chance; Poole is in the 99th for handoffs, and in the 50th for points per chance. In points created off isolations, Curry is in the 83rd percentile; Poole is in the 81st.

There was also this quote from Steph later on:

“For him to be who he wants to be in this league,” Curry said last month, “he has to have a little bit of versatility. Being able to play different styles. Sometimes start, sometimes come off the bench. Sometimes 30 minutes, sometimes 15. You’ve got to be able to be yourself through all of those situations. At some point, we all kind of go through that. I think he is built for it, and he is going to have something to show for it.”

We’re seeing all of that in this series against the Nuggets, during which Poole has scored 30 points on 9 of 13 shooting and 29 points on 10 of 16 shooting. He’s 10 of 17 from three and has 11 assists, including eight of them last night.

He’s also clearly making Steph and Klay better when they all play together.

Klay shot 44 percent from the field and 40 percent from three with Poole on the floor this season, and 41 from the field and 36.5 from deep when Poole was on the bench. Steph shot 45-39 with Poole in and 43-38 with Poole out.

Through two games, Golden State is plus-24 in the 13 minutes that Steph, Klay, Draymond and Poole have shared the floor. (They’re plus-6 in the 17 minutes Steph-Klay-Dray have played without Poole and plus-6 in the 66 other minutes.) They’re 18 of 26 from the field and 7 of 9 from deep with that foursome on the court, and they’ve yet to turn the ball over. They have 49 points in 13 minutes! And it’s all just shooting that totally warps the floor. (They’ve committed twice as many fouls as they’ve drawn with this group in the game.)

What are the Nuggets supposed to do about this? What is anyone?