San Francisco Chronicle - (Sunday)
Wiggins showed moxie after move to Warriors
With the Warriors’ 201920 season officially done, The Chronicle is reviewing how each player fared.
During his 51⁄2 seasons with the Timberwolves, Andrew Wiggins had been labeled a poor defender, ball hog, lazy worker, bad contract. But in February, when the Warriors acquired Wiggins in a blockbuster trade, they banked that all Wiggins needed was a change of scenery.
In his 12 games with Golden State, Wiggins began to tap into the potential that made him the No. 1 pick in the 2014 NBA draft. He thrived in the Warriors’ motion offense, defending multiple positions, cutting hard to the rim and providing consistent effort.
In 33.6 minutes per game with Golden State, Wiggins averaged 19.4 points on 45.7% shooting, 4.6 rebounds and 3.6 assists. His Warriors averages of 1.3 steals and 1.4 blocks were above his singleseason best figures. The Lakers’ LeBron James and Anthony Davis, Houston’s James Harden and Russell Westbrook, Miami’s Jimmy Butler and Phoenix’s Devin Booker were among the AllStars Wiggins gave trouble defensively. Though he could improve his efficiency, Wiggins showed enough in a limited sample size for the Warriors to believe he might be a longterm solution at small forward. Most of his highlights with Golden
State were based on natural ability. Once he gets more comfortable in the Warriors’ system, he should get easier looks at the rim.
It will also help that Warriors AllStar guards Stephen Curry and Klay Thompson are expected to be fully healthy next season. With defenses no longer free to zero in on Wiggins, he should be able to rely on his athleticism to get to the rim. This simple directive is much appreciated for someone who shouldered plenty of pressure with the Timberwolves.
After years of feeling unwanted, he is glad to be with a franchise that’s more focused on his strengths than his weaknesses. Many in the Warriors’ organization figured that the narrative surrounding Wiggins had gotten so negative in Minnesota that he was underrated.
Now, people are seeing that he’s far from a lost cause. As head coach Steve Kerr put it, Wiggins “is a damn good NBA player. It seems like people have forgotten that.”
Offseason outlook: Wiggins has three years, $94.7 million left on his contract. To shed his reputation as one of the league’s most overpaid players, he’ll need to build some oncourt synergy with Curry, Thompson and Draymond Green.
That’s why the Warriors’ summer minicamp, which is expected to be in late July or early August, will be so important for Wiggins. He impressed in a dozen games with Golden State this season, but his longterm success with the franchise will come down to how he plays off the team’s core players.