Under pressure forward reminds Golden State Warriors why it will be hard to move him

Andrew Wiggins' form has been rightly under scrutiny for almost the entirety of the season, with the veteran forward proving one of the biggest disappointments in the league not just from a Golden State Warriors' perspective.

The 28-year-old's future at the franchise has come under question as a result. That was reiterated on Saturday when NBA Insider Marc Stein confirmed that the Warriors remain "most open" to trading Wiggins before the February 8 deadline.

Andrew Wiggins' performance on Saturday suggests the Golden State Warriors will still find it difficult to move on from the 2022 All-Star

The issue for Golden State is that Wiggins' form has deteriorated to a point where his contract may now be viewed as a negative asset. Rather than trying to find an upgrade, there's been suggestions that the franchise should simply move him on for expiring deal/s to open up future financial flexibility.

That will be a hard thought for the Warriors to contend with, only made more difficult by Wiggins' good performance against the Los Angeles Lakers on Saturday. The former number one overall pick had 22 points on 8-of-12 shooting and 3-of-4 from three-point range, while also adding five rebounds, three assists, two steals and a block in just over 41 minutes.

While they've been few and far between, there's still been moments of Wiggins recapturing his best form this season. That's the most frustrating aspect, that there's still small glimpses of how good he can be in the Golden State system.

That was again the case against the Lakers on Saturday, with Wiggins remaining the team's primary perimeter defender while being a versatile option on offense who can shoot off the catch, get out in transition, and post-up smaller defenders on occasion.

Of course, that's Wiggins near his best. This season has seen too much inconsistency on defense, a horrible 31% from three-point range, and his fair share of missed layups and general shots around the rim against mismatches.

Still, Saturday was a reminder of what he can do. Golden State could trade Wiggins and assets to try and find an upgrade, but there's no guarantee that said acquisition will fit as well as the Canadian does when he's playing well.

As weird as it may sound, Wiggins might be in season-best form right now. He's recorded four-straight games of at least 12+ points for the first time this season, with three of them being at least 16 points. That in itself brings an added element of intrigue as his future continues to garner speculation ahead of the deadline.