Podz proclaims he never expects to miss playoffs again in career
Podz proclaims he never expects to miss playoffs again in career originally appeared on NBC Sports Bay Area
Warriors guard Brandin Podziemski accomplished plenty during his first NBA season, but reaching the playoffs wasn't one of them.
Golden State snuck into the NBA Play-In Tournament and was bounced in the first game after falling to the Sacramento Kings in a win-or-go-home contest, cutting the Warriors' season short much earlier than usual. The team missed the playoffs for just the third time in 12 seasons -- a feeling Podziemski never wants to experience in his career ever again.
"I want to be there," Podziemski said on 95.7 The Game's "Willard and Dibs." "I expect myself to never not make the playoffs again in my career. I went to Game 5 in Milwaukee when [the Bucks] played the [Indiana] Pacers while we were at home. Just to see the environment and what it was like -- personally I thought when we played in Sacramento, it was louder than it was in Milwaukee in the actual playoffs.
"But for me, just seeing the physicality, the toughness, how the whistle changes in the playoffs -- I think it kind of fits my brand of basketball because I am a physical player on both sides of the ball. So I think that kind of fits me, and it's something I'm looking forward to, especially next year."
It didn't take long for Podziemski to be a key contributor for the Warriors in his rookie season. He was thrust into the starting lineup to replace a struggling Klay Thompson and instantly provided a youthful spirit to a low-energy rotation.
Podziemski averaged 9.1 points on 45.4-percent shooting with 5.8 rebounds and 3.7 assists in 74 games, and ranked eighth among rookies in minutes per game (25.7), 10th in points (9.2), fifth in assists (3.7), sixth in rebounding (5.8) and third in 3-point percentage (38.5).
The 21-year-old was selected to the 2023-24 NBA All-Rookie First Team on Monday, joining Oklahoma City Thunders' Chet Holmgren, Miami Heat's Jaime Jaquez Jr., Charlotte Hornets' Brandon Miller and San Antonio Spurs' Victor Wembanyama on the first team.
It is clear that Podziemski is just getting started, but he promised himself never to watch the playoffs from home again -- and plans to do everything in his power to do just that.
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