Andre Iguodala has been part of the Golden State Warriors (led by Stephen Curry) for a combined seven years, in total. He has been a reliable servant to the team and has always done well when asked for. The fans of the franchise also think the same. This season, he hasn’t played much due to rotations and injuries.
He is much closer to retirement than to his prime and hence more chances have been given to the likes of Andrew Wiggins, Jonathan Kuminga, Otto Porter Jr., and Gary Payton II. Still, his loyalty to the Warriors organization is very much praiseworthy and very rare these times.
“I play to protect Steph’s legacy” — Iguodala (2019)
Need more dudes like Iggy. pic.twitter.com/d6p6LXVMpA
— SplashBrosMuse (@SplashBrosMuse) May 31, 2022
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Recently, a video has resurfaced on Twitter giving light to that fact. In a 2019 video, Iguodala repeatedly stated that he wants to win the chip for Steph Curry because he likes him a lot. In his own words, he says, “Play to protect Steph?s legacy.” “Iggy” found Curry to be a good man who doesn’t deserve backlash from his peers. It’s very illuminating because he knows Curry for more than seven years.
This melted the hearts of Warriors fans and was made fun of by others. These are some of the choice reactions found on NBA Twitter:
https://twitter.com/orlandoupnext/status/1531785606874939400?s=20&t=75niDau5irWNZLQIBqnvjA
This what Curry fans wanted KD to do 😂😂😂😂😂 https://t.co/LpKm0L9cOB
— KD’S BURNER (@Montrey___) June 1, 2022
So in reality KD just a hater? https://t.co/Z7KTr2uews
— ╭∩╮(ಠ_ಠ)╭∩╮ (@erisyeb) June 1, 2022
Protecting another man’s legacy over your own is wild https://t.co/tsBS0T3zN9
— jae (@javenchy) June 1, 2022
Warriors fans really some weirdos lmao
Steph is their daddy https://t.co/QcI3zwlm9z— Pete (@Peter_Bandele) June 1, 2022
Stephen Curry lost the 2015 FMVP to Iguodala
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Iguodala has been a big part of the Warriors team since they formed a dynasty in the mid-2010s. He may have not put up huge numbers on paper, but as a role player, he had done his job really well. In fact, he did it so well that he won the Finals MVP in 2015. Fans and experts said that Curry should have won that award. Still, Iguodala had changed that Finals series on its head. He averaged 16.3 points, 4 assists, and 5.8 rebounds that series.
The Warriors were down 2-1 to the LeBron James-led Cleveland Cavaliers. Coach Steve Kerr replaced Andrew Bogut with Andre Iguodala during Game 3. This led to the formation of the “Death Lineup”. He scored a season-high of 22 points on 8/15 shooting, which included four three-pointers. He was also the primary defender against LeBron James and kept him quiet with 38% shooting. For comparison, James shot 44% without Iguodala defending him.
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Hence, he became the Finals MVP and an important name in Warriors history. Hence, it is no surprise that the Warriors fans love “Iggy”.