Jordan Poole's first 13 games of the 2025-26 season were defined by a jarring demotion to the bench and a wild rollercoaster of shot selection. Empty calories plagued his early starts. Look no further than 10/24 vs SAS, where he tallied 21 points but posted a -0.3 Impact because it took him a grueling 20 field goal attempts to reach that mark. Conversely, he managed to generate a massive +14.4 Impact on 10/27 vs BOS despite shooting a dismal 5-for-14 from the floor, making up for his 22 inefficient points by dialing up his defensive effort and chasing down loose balls. The coaching staff finally yanked him from the starting lineup in late October. This move briefly unlocked his offensive ceiling on 11/01 vs LAC, as Poole erupted for 30 points on 7-of-13 shooting from beyond the arc, yielding a +10.3 Impact as a pure microwave scorer. He remains a frustratingly volatile talent who can shoot his team into a blowout or out of a tight game on any given night.

Jordan Poole’s mid-season stretch was defined by maddening volatility, swinging wildly between microwave scoring and complete invisibility. He looked like an elite bench weapon on 12/30 vs NYK, pouring in 26 points to drive a massive +18.6 Impact score. Yet, that offensive rhythm vanished just days later when thrust into the starting lineup on 01/03 vs POR. Despite scoring 16 points in that contest, his abysmal shot selection—bricking 11 of his 16 field goal attempts—resulted in a damaging -4.4 Impact. The floor completely fell out on 01/10 vs WAS. Poole logged a catastrophic -23.5 Impact in just 12 minutes, putting up zero points and zero rebounds while offering absolutely no defensive resistance to justify his floor time. You never know which version of Poole is walking out of the tunnel. When his wild jumpers fall, he is a game-wrecking force, but his lack of secondary playmaking makes him an active liability on cold nights.