Jordan Poole Compares Pelicans to Championship Warriors Team

New Orleans Pelicans star Jordan Poole compared this year's New Orleans Pelicans team to the 2022 championship Golden State Warriors team

Sep 23, 2025; Metairie, LA, USA; New Orleans Pelicans guard Jordan Poole (3) shoots a half court shot during media day at Ochsner Sports Performance Center. Mandatory Credit: Matthew Hinton-Imagn Images | Matthew Hinton-Imagn Images

When the New Orleans Pelicans added star guard Jordan Poole into the fold this offseason, one of the immediate takeaways was that there would now be a much-needed injection of NBA championship experience in a locker room that desperately needed it. New Orleans parted ways with cornerstone CJ McCollum to acquire Poole, signaling its intentions as a franchise. 

In addition to adding Poole, the Pelicans also landed his former Golden State Warriors teammate in center Kevon Looney. Looney was a more consistent presence in Golden State’s dynasty years, winning three rings with the franchise. Looney was an everyday starter for the Warriors during their 2022 championship run and averaged six points per game. 

Dec 16, 2022; Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA; Golden State Warriors guard Jordan Poole (3) talks with center Kevon Looney (5) during a break in action against the Philadelphia 76ers during the fourth quarter at Wells Fargo Center. Mandatory Credit: Bill Streicher-Imagn Images | Bill Streicher-Imagn Images

With two critical members of that championship team preparing to play their first season back together in New Orleans, Poole made it clear that he believes this Pelicans team has plenty of similarities to the championship Warriors team that he and Looney played on. 

“As soon as you walk into a locker room at the beginning of the season, you can kind of feel it in the locker room, with the guys, the chemistry, the camaraderie,” Poole said. “We've got guys that compete, where you don't have to make us get after each other, or make us play hard against each other.

While the product on the court matters significantly, how a team operates in the locker room and their synergy can be just as important.

“We've got guys that just want to naturally get better. I think iron sharpens iron is a really good quote for this team. Being able to go into the locker room with a group of guys who just want to go and hoop is fun for us. Definitely elements of a championship team."

Experience and Youth

While Poole and Looney do bring a necessary level of experience to the Pelicans’ locker room, Poole believes the team’s youth, combined with that experience, is what has the team feeling some confidence ahead of the upcoming regular season. 

Jordan Poole is HYPED him and Kevon Looney are reunited in NOLA 👏⚜️ pic.twitter.com/jmS1PWCLuu

— Bleacher Report (@BleacherReport) July 1, 2025

“I think (the talent) is good,” Poole continued. “I think we've all got enough experience in the league to understand what it's like, but we're young enough to still put ourselves in positions to keep learning and keep growing.

“We're at an age where we can do it together. We can all kind of grow up in this process, get in the playoffs, play meaningful games, go through tough stretches together as a unit, and that's really what builds teams.”

Pelicans announce Broadcast Schedule for 2025-26 season!

📺 GCSEN Broadcast 80 Regular Season Games
📻 WWL Radio To Air All 82 Regular Season Games

— New Orleans Pelicans (@PelicansNBA) October 13, 2025

The Pelicans open the season on the road against the Memphis Grizzlies on Oct. 22 and will play their home opener against the San Antonio Spurs on Oct. 24.