SAN FRANCISCO – When the Warriors step into the NBA playoffs Sunday, the eyes of planet hoops will focus on Stephen Curry, Jimmy Butler III and Draymond Green. Yet their youngest teammate, Brandin Podziemski, knows he’ll be in the corners of those eyes.
The haters will keep him in view, anticipating failure so they can say, “We told you he shouldn’t be on the floor.”
The believers will be vigilant, hoping for success, so they can say, “Maybe now you understand why he’s playing.”
Podziemski scans social media and is aware of the chatter, some of it rational, such as those signaling that he’s a bit too audacious for a 22-year-old in his second NBA season. Much of it, however, is from unnerved folks venting from afar behind a keyboard.
Taking advice from Paige Bueckers, the former UConn star who was the No. 1 overall pick in the 2025 WNBA draft, Podziemski insists he ignores the noise.
“She just told me never take criticism from someone you wouldn’t ask for advice from,” he says. “So, I kind of just took that. Seeing random people say things good or bad, if I wouldn’t ask for advice from them, why would I accept their criticism?
“I know my circle. I know the Warriors. They always have my best interests and are going to do things that are best for me.”
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Golden State’s stance on Podziemski is solid. There is organizational belief. That he has started the last 24 games – usually alongside Curry, Green, Butler and Moses Moody – is strong testimony. That lineup is 17-3 and provided the boost that lifted the Warriors into position for the playoffs.
None of those 24 games were playoff games. Most of them, surely the last nine, were high-stakes affairs with playoff implications. Consider that stretch a primer of what’s to come beginning this weekend against the Rockets in Houston.
“I’ve been able to feel it since the Memphis game in Memphis (April 1),” Podziemski says. “Every game since then, except maybe Portland, has been like that. You can feel it. People have asked me, ‘Is there any pressure in those situations, knowing, you’re with Steph, Jimmy and Dray out there a lot of the time? For me, there’s no pressure if you don’t set an expectation for yourself in terms of making or missing a shot.
“You just go in there, open-minded and play instinctually, which I know I’m really good at. And just kind of live with the results. And so that just kind of cleared my mind of having any pressure.”
Coach Steve Kerr trusts Podziemski and has been willing to let him play through mistakes, mostly because he doesn’t make many of the mindless variety. Yes, he is prone to over-dribbling. Yes, he sometimes struggles to keep his man from exploding toward the rim; there is a reason Moody gets those assignments.
But the Warriors benefit from Podziemski’s general court awareness and grit. If he’s shooting well, it’s a welcome bonus; they’re 15-6 when he scores 15 or more points. He was fourth on the team in rebounding and seventh among all NBA guards. He tends to find ways to make a positive impact.
Podziemski has studied Kerr’s flexible coaching patterns in the postseason enough to know his starting role is not guaranteed. If he starts Game 1, he’ll have to earn it every game thereafter.
“I know it’s going to be, maybe not the smoothest ride to a championship in terms of my individual success,” Podziemski says. “But I know coach knows that he can count on me to make plays down the stretch and help us win games. So, I don’t really look too much into that. I just try to go out there and maximize my minutes.
“Making shots is a part of that. Any team that’s won a championship in the history of the game, every team has their stars that perform, and the teams that have the most consistent role players that step up every night from the playoffs win the championships.”
Podziemski’s task is offense-first, to balance playmaking with getting buckets. Defensively, he’ll be asked to stay solid enough to avoid being cooked repeatedly. The Warriors can live with mediocre offense if he holds his own defensively. He’ll have to go nuclear on offense to stay on the floor if he’s leaky on defense.
And don’t think for a minute that the keyboard gangsters will spare Podziemski if he shows any indication of being unable to meet the moment in his first foray into the playoffs.
“It’s just taking the matchup personally, whether I have Fred VanVleet or Jalen Green or whoever it is,” Podziemski says. “Knowing that I can kind of give it all now, and it’s the playoffs. It’s ‘go time.’ Since my back injury, I just been kind of not coasting through defense, but just being conservative with my back.
“And now that it’s playoff time, I’m just going to give it everything I have out there.”
If that’s enough to succeed, eyes will turn elsewhere. To Steph, or Jimmy or Draymond.
If that’s not enough, those eyes will turn toward Podziemski, no matter who else is on the floor.
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