Following his first ever All-Star appearance last season, Golden State Warriors forward Andrew Wiggins seems to have pushed his play into a whole new gear. With the exclusion of one underwhelming game, the 27-year-old is on pace to make an All-NBA team this season.
Since the trade that landed both himself and the draft pick that turned into Jonathan Kuminga, Wiggins has been a machine for the Warriors. He’s had a legitimate case for an All-Defense selection in his two full seasons with the franchise, ultimately making his first All-Star appearance last season.
Golden State Warriors wing Andrew Wiggins was rewarded with an extension during the offseason, and he could now put himself in the frame for All-NBA selection.
Even when making his All-Star game debut, Wiggins still held some significant weaknesses in his all-around game. He lacked the ability to truly rebound at an appropriate level for his size and athleticism, he wasn’t an effective playmaker, and his missed free throws often proved frustrating.
In the early stretch of this season, Wiggins has increased his rebounding by 1.2 per game, also increasing his steals and blocks per game. His free-throw percentage has increased by nearly 10%, while his field goal and three-point percentages are comparative to last season.
Ten games into the season, Wiggins is averaging 17.4 points, 5.7 rebounds and 2.9 assists per game. If we were to remove the game against the Detroit Pistons where he was unable to hit water in the ocean, he’d be shooting over 50% from the field and have increased numbers in almost every statistical category.
Wiggins making his case for All-Defensive team selection
As we have seen the past two years, even if you are a top ten defensive player in the league, it doesn’t necessarily lead to an automatic All-Defensive team selection. You could make the argument Wiggins has been snubbed of this honour in each of the past two seasons.
That should end this season, however, due to career highs in every defensive stat including rebounds. He’s been excellent on that end of the floor, even if the Warriors as a team have struggled.
Using that same logic, it may be tough for Wiggins to get an All-NBA nod. The plethora of talent at the forward positions right now makes it even more difficult for him to get that final vote of approval. If you look at previous All-NBA forward selections from last season, it’s difficult to argue that Wiggins has superseded them into one of the spots.
For Wiggins to make an All-NBA team, he’s going to have to continue increasing his free throw percentage, keep rebounding at a high rate, keep making the open shots, and the Warriors need to start winning games. Even then, it’s likely a slim shot given the calibre of players around the league.
If Wiggins is able to keep up this elite level of play and possibly elevate even further, an All-NBA selection isn’t out of the question — he may be capable of making both an All-NBA team and an All-Defensive team this year.
Wiggins turnaround story has already been amazing to watch, but wouldn’t we love to see even higher honours for a player once regularly labelled as a draft bust.