Brandin Podziemski Is Going To Have A Breakout Season

Brandin Podziemski Is Going To Have A Breakout Season

When Stephen Curry went down in the Minnesota Timberwolves series, it was clear that the Warriors had a glaring flaw that they needed to be addressed. They needed another creator who could be consistent in hitting outside looks, especially the catch and shoot looks created for them, be a threat as a pull-up shooter, and overall provide offensive production to reduce the offensive load on both Jimmy Butler and Stephen Curry heading into next season. But because of the whole Jonathan Kaminga situation that’s going on, the Warriors haven’t been active in free agency to address that need and won’t be making any moves until that situation is resolved. Matter of fact, they’re literally the only team in the league not to sign anyone free agency or to retain any of their own free agents. This means that internal improvement has to be the way to go. And what better candidate to fulfill this role than former Santa Clara guard Brandon Pajki. Airpods had an up and down season in 2025 with the Dubs, but ended strong with playoff showings that demonstrate that he can be effective on and off the ball and can have a breakout season in 2026 to lift the Warriors ceiling. In this video, we’re going to discuss Pods’s tenure with the Dubs, what he does well with this team, his resurrection in 2025, and why he still can take the next step next season. Before we begin, be sure to drop a like as that makes a massive difference for the channel, and sub for more content like this. As a rookie, Airpods exceeded all expectations that the Dubs had for him. Not only fitting into the Warrior system of constant ball movement, offball movement, and hitting outside looks, but being an absolute workhorse for the team. Even when he wasn’t named a starter, the man was fighting for offensive rebounds to create second chance opportunities for the team and even drew the most charges in the entire league at 38 as a rookie. His breakout game that season was a game against the Timberwolves where Steph couldn’t play due to injury and Clay and Draymond literally got ejected in the opening minutes of the game. He scored 23 points on 50% from the field and he demonstrated his ability to drive and kick and find the open man, his ability to score out of the pick and roll, his floater game, and the evidence of his self-creation ability. Pods had glowing reviews heading into training camp, became the 19th player in Warriors history to make all rookie first team, had further confidence heading into 2025 season, and was deemed untouchable even in a potential Lowry Markin trade. However, he proved to be in that sophomore slump in a season where the Dubs desperately needed help in the worst way possible. AirPods was looking like Jack Harlo out there because he was putting up tour dates, shooting 40% from the field and 30% from three through the first 30 games of the season. A huge step back from the 45% from the field and nearly 40% from three he shot in his rookie season. It didn’t help that he suffered a nose contusion in the preseason that had him wear a protective mask afterwards. He claimed to be experiencing dizziness during a regular season game against the Washington Wizards and he suffered a right abdominal injury that played a major role in him missing 18 games this past season. Also, keep in mind that the Warriors were just extremely bad in these stretch of games, especially offensively given this happened prior to the Jim Butler trade and the team lacked ball handlers or pretty much anyone who could draw attention from the defense if Steph was off the floor. However, after the Jim Butler trade and his return from injury, Airpods was playing the best basketball of his career, convincing me why he will have a big leap in year three. In the last 25 games of the regular season, he averaged 15 points per game, 3.6 assists a game, and a steal on 47% from the field, and 41% from three on six attempts a game. He could do work on the ball in initiating the offense, his ability to relocate off the ball, and his ability to get to his spots, and have confidence as a pull-up shooter. Games that really exemplified this were actually back-toback games that he had against the LA Lakers and the Denver Nuggets in April where he had a combined 54 points, 16 rebounds, and 12 assists. Specifically against the LA Lakers, he showed his increased confidence from the outside in hitting catch and shoots and pull up threes, knocking down six made threes in the first half alone, going eight of 11 from the field in the first half, and even hitting the buzzer beating three to end the second quarter to extend the Warriors lead to 13 in a game they desperately needed to win to keep their playin and playoff hopes alive. What I also loved about him in this game were his ability to operate quickly off the catch and the clutch three that he made with less than two minutes to go in the fourth. But this all still pales in comparison to what he did in the Denver Nuggets game. With Curry and Butler commanding that much attention on the floor, relocating across the perimeter and opening up opportunities for yourself are the best ways to make defenses pay and capitalize off of that attention. I mentioned his ability to operate quickly off the catch against the Lakers, but this ability is advantageous in many ways. For one, Pods is actually great at attacking closeouts and getting to a spot in the mid-range or short mid-range and hitting jumpers or hitting floaters. Plus, he’s also shown his vote to put the ball on the floor and attack the rim and finish. And secondly, drawing more attention from the defenses and putting them in scramble mode just creates more opportunities for his teammates. Yet another step in Pod’s playmaking development. His ability off the ball aids him in his playmaking as well because he’s a solid cutter who will make the extra pass to give teammates an even better look with more responsibility on the ball. We even see him operating as a scoreer out of the pick and roll and pulling up from mid-range when bigs are in drop coverage. Other reasons why I’m fairly confident in his jump next season are his willingness to buy into the Warrior system and the little things that may or may not show up in the stat sheet. His willingness to spot up behind a three-point line to be found for easier looks in transition. His increased confidence in pulling the ball on the floor and creating plays, attacking room and finishing through contact. His relentless activity on the defensive end where he fights through screens and gets key deflections in pivotal moments of the game. His ability to push the pace in transition and his willingness to take and make contested pull-up jumpers are all a testament to his decision-making and his gradual development into one of the top options on this team. However, while there were a ton of great in his second half display last season, there also are areas where he needs clear improvement. For one, Airpods needs to be more consistent, as there were brilliant moments in the Rocket Series, but also ugly moments in the playoffs as well. He went 0 for five from the field and literally went scoreless in game two of the Rocket Series. Had a dreadful overall series against the Timber Rules, where shots 23% from the field and 18% from three through the first four games of the series prior to his bounce back in game five. I get that it was a lengthier Timberwolves team that was one of the better defensive units in the league, but this is unacceptable from what’s supposed to be the third option on a contending squad. When other role players are struggling to hit outside shots and are struggling to produce in Steph’s absence, you have to take that next step for the Warriors to have a shot. Secondly, Pods needs to develop more on his on ball self-creation ability to be that reliable third option. We’ve seen glimpses what he can do, but him having to share the floor with a soon to be 38 and 36-year-old Steph and Curry J Butler, respectively. It’s now more imperative than ever that Pods has to do even more work on the ball to keep defenses honest and to break them down when Steph isn’t on the floor so he can be another key creator. I have full faith in Pajki next season that he will take the next step. If the Warriors want to lift another title in Steph’s final years in the league, it’s now or never for the now third-year pro. With that being said, let me know your expectations for Brandon Pajki next season and whether you feel he can take that next step to be the definitive third option on this team. If you want to know why the Warriors and Jonathan Kaminga are in a very weird situation right now, or why other guys like Josh Giddy and Camp Thomas haven’t been signed to deals this off season, check out my video on the screen or the other video that YouTube highly recommends for you.

The Golden State Warriors’ Brandin Podziemski struggled to begin his sophomore season, but bounced back in the NBA playoffs against the Houston Rockets. Here’s why he will have a breakout season to take the offensive load off of Stephen Curry and Jimmy Butler.

0:00 – 1:35 Intro
1:36 – 2:41 Incredible Rookie Season
2:42 – 3:46 Sophomore Slump
3:46 – 6:54 Why He’ll Have A Breakout Season
6:55 – 8:56 Areas Of Improvement