The Golden State Warriors have some decisions to make regarding their future but one thing is for sure they should prioritize keeping Andrew Wiggins.
In an unexpected turn of events, Wiggins has legitimately become one of the most valuable assets in the NBA. Sure, his price tag is still a bit steep but compare his value to when he was in Minnesota and the difference is day and night.
Wiggins is now a premiere 3-and-D player and NBA All-Star starter. He just helped rally the Warriors to a championship and is only 27 years old.
He’s fallen into the perfect environment to thrive and that’s plenty of reason for Wiggins to stick around. Though, a chance to make more money elsewhere could persuade him to leave the Dubs.
In this case, the Warriors should probably give the man his money.
The Golden State Warriors should do everything they can to keep Andrew Wiggins on the roster, even if it means paying a steep price.
A recent video of Wiggins had me thinking.
The Celtics tried practically everything to get Steph Curry switched onto Jayson Tatum: on-ball screens, off-ball wide downscreens, Tatum setting screens, etc.
— Joe Viray (@JoeVirayNBA) August 28, 2022
They even tried baiting a switch w/ Spain PnR, counting on the Warriors countering it the traditional way. But...
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While much of the credit can be given to the Warriors’ coaching staff and Draymond Green’s brilliance in getting this whole play started by bumping Robert Williams — it is an incredible athletic feat from Wiggins that makes this all work.
Wiggins contains a drive and then sprints from near the baseline all the way to the top of the key to close out on Jayson Tatum, before again containing a drive and forcing a pickup.
The NBA is full of elite defenders but how many are doing this at the highest stage of the game? How many have the speed, length and timing to do what Wiggins just did in that video?
The best part? Wiggins did it all season.
It was a shame Wiggins didn’t get a nod for the All-Defensive team but he would be one of my picks, for sure. He, alongside Draymond, made the engine run for Golden State defensively.
Moving forward, the Dubs will continue to rely on Wiggins’ versatility on defense and his consistent scoring on offense. It’s a proven formula that has already led to one chip so the Dubs would be foolish to lose Wiggins without putting up a fight.