Although the Golden State Warriors have not played as well as they have hoped for in the past few games, they are still one of the best teams in the NBA as they currently have the second-best record in the league.

The Warriors have had some unfortunate injuries including Klay Thompson, extended miss time from Draymond Green, and still waiting for a return on second-year big man James Wiseman. Fortunately for the Warriors, they have been able to have some guys really step up for them and make a big contribution to the success that they have been able to find this season.

Let's take a look at the three biggest unsung heroes of this year's Warriors team.

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Warriors Unsung Heroes 2022

3. Andrew Wiggins

Before the season started, many fans of the Golden State Warriors wanted Andrew Wiggins to be traded. It wasn't necessarily the craziest thing to say because there were nights where he just wasn't playing the type of basketball that many people expect him to.

What he has been able to do this year on the offensive side of the ball cannot be looked at lightly as he is currently averaging 18.2 points per game while shooting nearly 50% from the field and over 40% from 3-point range. He has been a major reason why the Warriors have found the success that they have this season despite Steph Curry struggling for the better half of the last month, a Draymond Green injury, and Klay Thompson just returning a few weeks ago.

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Not only has Andrew Wiggins really improved his offensive game for this Warriors team this season in terms of his efficiency, but he has also been a great defensive player for them as well. There were parts of his earlier career that he was known as a lazy defender and didn't do much on the defensive side of the ball. Steve Kerr, head coach of the Golden State Warriors, is not somebody who is going to let his guys go out there and not defend at a high level. Andrew Wiggins has really accepted this role on the team as doing some of the dirty work when Draymond Green is not on the court.

Andrew Wiggins is going to be one of those guys that the Warriors are going to heavily have to rely on come playoff time because as we have seen with him, he is a guy who can go out and score 20 points on any given night. Factor him in with guys like Steph Curry, Klay Thompson, Draymond Green, Jordan Poole, and others, it looks like the Golden State Warriors could potentially win an NBA title if all things are clicking for them at the right time.

2. Jordan Poole

Coming into the season, many people believe that Jordan Poole was going to have a great third season in this league, but it would be tough to argue that anybody expected him to play the way that he has this season. He is currently averaging 16.7 points per game while shooting over 43% from the field. There are nights where he does struggle in terms of efficiency but there are also other nights where he can really take over a game and be the number one scoring option on this team.

Due to the injuries that the Warriors have had to face this season, he saw himself getting a bigger role than he could have imagined. Although it is unfortunate that Klay Thompson was injured for as long as he was, it is great to see him back and it also helps this Warriors team because they were able to develop Jordan Poole and see the type of potential that this kid has in this league. He has the ability to be an elite scorer in the NBA in a few seasons and he needs to just keep playing the way that he is for this Warriors team and not try to do too much when he is out there.

1. Gary Payton

After only playing 10 games for the Golden State Warriors a season ago, Gary Payton has really evolved into one of the best defenders in the NBA. As previously noted, coach Steve Kerr is not going to allow guys who do not defend at a high level unless your name is Steph Curry to be on the court. What Gary Payton does for this Warriors team cannot be replaced because he is the one who is always diving for loose balls, trying to save passes, and just doing everything he can to get rebounds.

Gary Payton is one of those guys who does all the little things well and every championship-caliber team needs that. He might not get the recognition that he deserves but that is to be expected when he is sitting behind some of the best players in the NBA. Payton is one of those guys who the Warriors are going to have to heavily rely on come playoff time because there are many elite scoring guards in the NBA, especially in the Western Conference, who he is going to have to have the duty of guarding for a certain amount of minutes each night.