Memphis Grizzlies veteran forward Andre Iguodala is an accomplished athlete with 15 years of experience in the NBA, but basketball was not his only career choice.
Per Claire Miller in Fast Company, via NBC Sports Bay Area, the newest Grizzlies wing desired to become a math teacher before settling on professional basketball to pay the bills.
“I come from a small town [Springfield, Illinois], and no one knew who I was,” Iguodala told Fast Company’s Claire Miller. “I thought I would go to college and become a math teacher. I remember joking around in practice and my coach was like, “You know there are NBA scouts here,” and I said, “What does that have to do with me?” He said, “Well, who do you think they’re here to see?”
The Grizzlies acquired Iguodala in the offseason as a salary dump from the Golden State Warriors. Memphis received a first-round pick alongside “Iggy” for a G League player in Julian Washburn. The Warriors needed cap space in order to acquire one-time All-Star guard D'Angelo Russell from the Brooklyn Nets.
Iguodala was a key member of the dynasty Warriors, winning three titles with the Oakland franchise and making five consecutive tripes to the NBA Finals, including winning the Finals MVP award in 2015 when Golden State took down LeBron James and the Cleveland Cavaliers in six games.
It's unclear if Iguodala will be on the youth Grizzlies roster by the start of training camp, but the front office reportedly expects the vet to be a part of the developing team in spite of an enticing choice to send Iggy to a win-now contender like to Los Angeles Clippers or Lakers.
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