Andre Iguodala's contributions and sacrifices for the Golden State Warriors‘ dynastic run are immeasurable. Thus, Iggy is undoubtedly right up there in terms of most beloved Warriors of all time.
While speaking to ESPN's Adrian Wojnarowski on The Woj Pod, Warriors president Bob Myers explained in detail what made the 2015 Finals MVP so special for their team.
“This is the part of Andre that's so impressive,” Warriors general manager Bob Myers told ESPN's Adrian Wojnarowski on “The Woj Pod.” “He says to Steve ‘All right, if that's what you think is best for the team.' Not only does he say that, he doesn't then call a reporter off the record and say, ‘This is B.S., this guy has never coached a game in his life and he's telling me to come off the bench? And I'm an Olympic champion and I'm an All-Star?' And then goes to practice and mopes, he doesn't do any of that. He authentically says and believes this is best for the team.
As Myers said, Iguodala's biggest sacrifice was fully accepting a bench role when Steve Kerr arrived in 2014. The move proved to change Golden State's fortunes for the better, as Iguodala thrived as the first reserve off the bench. Despite coming off the bench, Iguodala still finished games for the Warriors.
Myers also likened the situation to how a VP deserving of a promotion gets demoted instead to fill an organizational need:
“For people to really understand that, I say picture you were the VP in your franchise or organization, you were deserving of the role you had, you had the corner office, and they said, ‘Hey John, look you deserve this office, you deserve this title, but we're gonna knock you down to kind of an assistant or director, and by the way, it'll probably be on SportsCenter tonight and just have a good attitude, all right, see you later.'
Myers further painted the picture of what the current Miami Heat forward probably felt when Kerr broke to him his plans for the team. While Iguodala could have sulked and cried, he was professional enough to accept the role for the benefit of the team:
“In any event, Andre comes off the bench and it's harder and people interview him after the game and they say, ‘Andre how does it feel to come off the bench?' And he says, ‘I think this is what's best for the team.' And then the reporter turns off his microphone and says, ‘Really, this kinda sucks right, you don't want to do this?' And Andre says, ‘No, I will do this.' “
In the end, Iguodala's sacrifice helped Golden State a great deal in winning three championships in five years. Unfortunately, the Dubs needed to let go of the former Finals MVP to make room for the sign-and-trade deal that brought in D'Angelo Russell last summer.
Warriors fans surely miss having a winner like Iguodala on their team.
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