The Poole Party is now in New Orleans.

And there may not be a better place for it considering the two words Jordan Poole used to describe the city that is now his new home.

“It’s hot,” Poole said.

The Pelicans have been Poole’s new team for almost three months now after he was for acquired in a trade with the Washington Wizards in early July.

He’s hoping this stop will be better than his last one and more like the ones before that.

Poole’s basketball journey has taken him to some of the highest of highs.

He won a national high school title playing at the La Lumiere School in Indiana.

He played in the NCAA national championship game at Michigan where the Wolverines lost to Villanova.

And he won an NBA title with the Golden State Warriors in the 2021-’22 season, beating the Boston Celtics in six games.

But the last two season took him to the other end of the spectrum, winning just 33 total games in his two years with the Washington Wizards.

Now the 6-foot-4 guard is in New Orleans, hoping to get back to his winning ways while also helping the Pelicans climb out of the doldrums of last season when they won just 21 games.

“We believe we’re getting Jordan at just the right time, just the right opportunity in his career,” said Pelicans coach Willie Green. “He’s a guy who wants it. He works extremely hard, is in the gym night in and night out.”

In the trade, the Pelicans acquired Poole and gave up CJ McCollum, who had been in New Orleans for 3 ½ years.

Now it’ll be up to the 26-year old Poole to help fill McCollum’s shoes.

What does Poole bring on the court?

“My offensive skillset and being able to create for my teammates and being able to score the ball,” Poole said. “Being able to be a playmaker. Make life on the court easier for my teammates.”

Poole, entering his seventh NBA season, averaged career highs in both points (20.5) and steals (1.3) last season with the Wizards. He scored a career-best 45 points in a loss to the Clevland Cavaliers.

He wants to be just as effective in the locker room. He wants his championship experience to rub off on a franchise that has never been past the second round of the playoffs.

“Once you experience that at the highest level, It’s a feeling you want to replicate again,” Poole said.

Poole started working right away. As soon as the trade happened, he asked for a copy of the offensive sets and the terminology that the team uses. He is one of the first ones to get to the gym each morning. And since training camp has started, he’s been one of the more vocal players in practice.

“I didn’t know he was as talkative,” Green said. “But we strongly encourage our guys to continue to communicate, over communicate. He’s been spearheading that group.”

While Poole admits the New Orleans humidity has taken some time to get adjusted to, he has fit in right away with his teammates.

They welcome what he brings.

“Good dude, great player,” said Zion Williamson. “Very vocal on the court. He’s going to provide a lot of spacing for me on the court. For him to bring that championship experience here, I’m glad to have him here.”

That championship playoff experience includes a playoff run where Poole averaged 17 points and shot 50.8 % from the floor and 39% on 3-pointers as the Warriors won theirmost recent title. But the wins in Washington were a whole lot harder to come by. The Wizards (18-64 last season) were one of three teams to win fewer games than the Pelicans.

“Now I’m able to incorporate what it feels like to be on the tougher end of it when it comes to winning and losing,” Poole said. “The last two years for me were a bit more challenging. We weren’t able to win as much as I’d like. But coming to a situation with a new front office, that is the goal. That is the expectation. Everybody’s on the same page and it’ll be fun to go out there and compete against a really tough Western Conference.”

Poole loves what he’s seen in his new teammates. 

“You don’t want to have to force or go out of your way to push guys to want to be better.,” Poole said. “We have a lot of guys in the locker room who are naturally motivated.” 

Poole knows there is a thin line between being a good team and a great team. It’s part of the reason he puts in so much work. And it’s why he’s so vocal, making sure his teammates know what winning takes.

“I love the game,” Poole said. “I’ve been obsessed with the game. When you play at the highest level, it becomes a game of inches, And in those inches are the details. When you put in so much work, the results will start to show.”

The Pelicans will get their first action Oct. 3 and 4 in a pair of exhibition games in Australia. Poole can hardly wait to get started.

“I’m just ready to be invested with the team, with the community, with the crowd,” Poole said. “Bring the right energy, the positive energy. Just have fun.”