Since becoming a member of the Golden State Warriors, no player has sacrificed more on an individual standpoint than Andre Iguodala.While he only made one All-Star Game in his career, Iguodala was an upper-echelon starter for the Philadelphia 76ers and Denver Nuggets before becoming a Warrior. In fact, he started all 695 regular-season games and all 41 of his playoff contests before heading to Golden State.During his first season with the Warriors in 2013-2014, Iguodala started all 63 games that he played in, averaging 9.3 points, 4.7 rebounds and 4.2 assists over 32.4 minutes per game.However, he has started just one time in his last 228 regular-season games spanning the last three seasons and has been in the starting five for just six of Golden State’s last 61 playoff matchups.Despite the fact that he now comes off the bench as the team’s sixth man, the 6’6” 33-year old has made an impact on both ends of the court that counting stats cannot accurately depict. Averaging 7.6 points, 4.0 rebounds and 3.4 over 26.3 minutes in the regular season and 7.2 points, 4.1 rebounds and 3.2 assists in 26.2 minutes per contest in the playoffs this year, Iguodala’s ability to impact the game defensively and with his athleticism was a large part of Golden State’s success.
Consider the following statistic:
When he was on the court in the Finals, the Warriors outscored the Cavaliers by 60 points. That’s not a coincidence.
Therefore, the club is interested in bringing Iggy back and will reportedly award him with a lucrative, multi-year deal.
Via Tim Kawakami of The Mercury News, the two sides are still working out the final details in terms of the number of guaranteed years on the deal, but the salary range will be somewhere between $8 and $12 million per season.
In the Finals-clinching Game 5 victory, Iguodala helped the Warriors enjoy a 35-7 bench scoring advantage and stepped up a number of times to help Golden State secure the victory on their home court with 38 exceptional minutes.
After the game, he expressed his jubilation, saying, “I’ve been sooo stressed the last three or four weeks. When it’s time for me to be a little selfish and show what I can do … well, it shows there’s something powerful up there.”
“Andre is the ultimate professional and ultimate veteran,” teammate Stephen Curry said of Iguodala after the Warriors outscored the Cavs by 18 with the veteran on the court. “Any moment out there he can spark us, and you don’t know how it’s going to happen.”
It’s worth noting that Iguodala isn’t the Warriors’ primary concern this offseason, however.
The two-time MVP Curry is an unrestricted free agent. Kevin Durant is expected to decline his player option, which would also make him an unrestricted free agent. A few other rotational pieces are also set to test free agency.
Both Curry and Durant are expected to re-sign with the club with massive deals, but re-signing Iguodala is the first step in retaining their roster as Golden State will attempt to repeat next year in what would be their fourth-straight Finals appearance.
In the end, that’s what matters most to the franchise and its fanbase.