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The Golden State Warriors returned to the top of the mountain after a couple of down years, beating the Boston Celtics in the 2022 NBA Finals for a fourth championship in eight seasons. The Warriors looked like title contenders to start the season and then battled through adversity throughout the campaign before ultimately proving their championship mettle in the playoffs.
Andrew Wiggins played a key role in Golden State's run, taking on the role of defensive stopper while also providing some needed offensive punch to help Stephen Curry. During his end-of-season press conference on Saturday, Wiggins opened up on his desire to stay with the Warriors. He also confidently asserted that Golden State's reign is far from over:
“As good as we were this year, I feel like next year we’re going to be even better.”
-Andrew Wiggins says the Warriors are nowhere close to done yet. Says he expects JK, Moses Moody, James Wiseman to make big jumps this summer. It’s only up from here. #dubnation #goldblooded
— Kylen Mills (@KylenMills) June 18, 2022
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There are a couple of question marks when it comes to the roster next season. Key role players like Kevon Looney, Otto Porter Jr., Gary Payton II and Andre Iguodala are all set to be free agents, and the Warriors might not be willing to pay them all what they're hoping to get. However, as Wiggins noted, there are some key youngsters waiting in the wings to fill in for anybody who leaves, and all the core guys should be back in the fold.
As for Wiggins himself, he's eligible for a contract extension. Once viewed as a possible trade piece, it's hard to see Golden State shipping him off now after he played such an important role on a title winner. Perhaps the Warriors balk at giving the first-time All-Star a max extension because of their bloated payroll, but ownership has shown a willingness to spend big if it's for a title contender.
Either way, Golden State is the early favorite to win it all again next season, which is something Wiggins clearly agrees with.
