Preview: Warriors look to tie series in Game 2 vs Lakers

Will Jordan Poole have another strong game?

The Golden State Warriors are down 0-1 to the Los Angeles Lakers after dropping a home game Tuesday. That’s Golden State’s fifth Game 1 loss since Coach Steve Kerr took over the the team, and the third time it’s happened in their own building.

The Warriors will be focused on evening the series up tonight, while the Lakers look to get greedy and take the first two games of the series.

Golden State Warriors vs Los Angeles Lakers

May 4th, 2023 | 6:00 PM PT

Watch: ESPN | Listen: 95.7 The Game

The stars came out to play in the first contest, with Anthony Davis scoring 30 points and grabbing 23 rebounds while LeBron James added a double-double of his own with 22 points and 11 rebounds. The Dubs answered with 27 points from Stephen Curry and 25 from Klay Thompson, with both Splash Bros hitting 6 three-pointers each.

A big reason the Lakers were victorious in Game 1 was Dennis Schroeder coming off of the bench to deliver a big 19 points. He shot 5-of-10 from the field and also 9-of-10 from the free throw line. Schroeder led the Lakers in both free throw makes and attempts, putting pressure on a Golden State defense that already had its hands full handling James and Davis.

On the flip side, the Warriors finally got a breakout game from their reserve guard Jordan Poole. JP put up 21 points on 7-of-15 shooting with 6 made treys of his own in a stirring return to the scoring rhythm that made him a key member of Golden State’s title run last season.

His struggle to score consistently against the Sacramento Kings in the first round had Laker fans like Snoop Dogg encouraging him to keep jacking up shots.

But Poole’s bounce back game is a good sign and a reminder that the champs have some youth they can rely on off of the bench. Will he keep his good vibes going into this contest tonight or will there be lingering effects from the criticism of his missed potential game winner last game?