Prior to getting traded and signing a two-year extension with the Miami Heat, Andre Iguodala was dealing with his then-teammates Dillon Brooks and Ja Morant throwing barbs at him as the trade deadline neared. Stephen Curry was quick to silence them with a photo of Iguodala's last of three Larry O'Brien trophies — demanding respect for the 2015 NBA Finals MVP.
Now with his Heat debut out of the way, Iguodala reflected on his former teammate coming to his defense:
“Yeah, that’s my guy (laughs). I would do the same for him,” said Iguodala, according to Sam Amick of The Athletic. “But I understand the generation that we’re in, and the new millenials we’re dealing with, and how social media comes into play and how someone could feed that to a young guy and (it grows).”
Brooks was first to take aim at Iguodala once he was prompted to speak about it. Once his comments went viral, Curry was quick to respond on Instagram, at which point Morant took the wheel by making a Kevin Durant-related barb in response.
Iguodala never got involved in what could have escalated to a beef between players, with the Heat star noting that he never took Brooks' or Morant's opinions personal.
“No, not at all. No, not at all,” said Iguodala. “But every player in the league is my guy. You know, I’m a union guy. Players come first. Their safety, their security, their job security, their health, their mental health. After they’re done playing basketball, that’s (what comes) first. So I don’t see that when I see them. All I see is a guy where, if I can help him any type of way from here on out, (he will), you know what I’m saying?
“It’s like with our retired players. I spoke at the retired players luncheon a couple of years ago, four or five years ago, and it’s like, you know, we’re all connected. I take that stuff serious. They’ll figure that out, hopefully. But yeah, I don’t take any of that personally.”
Iguodala, who played 23 minutes in his first game with the Heat, is in his 16th NBA season and trying to make the most to secure his financial future while Morant and Brooks are a rookie and a third-year player, respectively — yet to face any of those issues with their careers in the league just getting started.
Iguodala has the presence of mind to acknowledge that and agree to disagree without causing any further conflict, handled expertly for a player who's been so intertwined with the NBPA and how players handle CBA negotiations.
The Heat travel to Oracle Arena on Monday night to take on the Warriors.
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