"All talk and no walk": NBA fans roast Brandin Podziemski for below-par defense vs Rockets

In this new era of the franchise, Brandin Podziemski is one of the many young players the Golden State Warriors are trying to develop. While he's shown nice flashes on the offensive end, fans online recently roasted him for his defense.

On Wednesday night, the Warriors took on the Houston Rockets in the NBA Cup quarterfinals. During the game, a clip of Podziemksi started making waves on social media. He was seen barely fighting through screens and then got lost on a switch that led to an easy Amen Thompson dunk.

Following this lackluster defensive showing from Brandin Podziemski, fans jabbed at the Warriors' guard on social media.

Fans then began bringing up old comments of people saying Podziemski was going to be the next Klay Thompson. With mishaps like this on defense, they are unsure he has the same two-way potential of the former All-Star.

"Have no idea why this guy got so much hype last season lmao heard people calling him the next Klay lmao," one fan said.

"The improved version of Klay 😂😂😂," another fan said.

"Bros a toddler," Said one fan.

Despite his mishap on defense on that one possession, Podziemski managed to do a little bit of everything for the Warriors against the Rockets. In 30 minutes off the bench, he finished with eight points, two rebounds, four assists and two steals.

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Brandin Podziemski comes up short on potential game-winning shot

While Brandin Podziemski's defense is certainly noteworthy, it was not his biggest moment of the game. In the final seconds, he had an opportunity to punch the Golden State Warriors' ticket to Las Vegas.

After Jalen Green knocked down a pair of free throws to put the Houston Rockets up one, the Warriors had a chance to win the game in the final seconds. As expected, they tried to run an inbounds play for Steph Curry. However, the Rockets quickly trapped him and forced him to give up the ball.

Curry ended up swinging the ball back to Brandin Podziemski, who was the inbounder, for a potential game-winning three. He had a somewhat clean look at the rim, but an outstretched Jabari Smith Jr. managed to alter the shot at the last second.

Podziemski had a strong rookie season after being drafted 19th overall in 2023. However, it's been a bit of a shaky start for him in year two. Through 23 games, he is averaging 7.9 points and 3.4 assists while shooting 24.7% from beyond the arc.

At the moment, the Warriors find themselves trying to round out a competitive roster around Curry while he's still playing at a high level. The front office was originally hesitant to move Podziemski, but if he continues to struggle, that stance could change before the deadline.