"Me, Steph, Draymond and Klay, we never played our first game together till the playoffs" - Andrew Wiggins on the confidence he had in Warriors winning the championship
Andrew Wiggins has stated that he always believed the Golden State Warriors would win the NBA championship last season. He said that he knew that once the Golden State Warriors were at full strength, they would be unstoppable.
Wiggins spoke about the Warriors' run to the title on an episode of Point Forward.
“I always believed we could win the championship. And that we started off hot and I’m like, ‘Damn, we don’t got Klay yet.’ We had the second-best record in the league and we don’t have Klay yet.”
He added:
“When Klay comes back, it’s gonna be scary. Me, Steph, Draymond and Klay, we never played our first game together till the playoffs, first game. Man, when we started gelling it’s over!”
Andrew Wiggins first played alongside Klay Thompson on January 9 against the Cleveland Cavaliers. It was the latter’s first game in nearly three years. Draymond Green injured his calf in the warmups and was on the court for only 11 seconds.
The Golden State Warriors had a 30-9 record at that point, second only to the Phoenix Suns. Green went on to miss the next 29 games due to injury and the Dubs held a 47-22 record when the charismatic forward returned.
They were tied for second place along with the Memphis Grizzlies but were nearly 10 games behind the Suns.
Andrew Wiggins was out with an illness when the former Defensive Player of the Year returned to action.
A game after Green’s return, it was Steph Curry’s turn to spend some time on the sidelines. He missed the remainder of the regular season due to an ankle injury.
Before the postseason started, Andrew Wiggins, Steph Curry, Klay Thompson and Draymond Green played a total of 11 seconds together.
Andrew Wiggins is expected to play a big part in the Golden State Warriors’ future success
Golden State Warriors team owner Joe Lacob has built a team that can sustain its success. They picked up their fourth title in eight years last season and are expected to dominate the league over the next few years.
Steph Curry is still a terror on offense while a healthy Klay Thompson is likely to only get better. They also have incredible support from the young guns headed by Andrew Wiggins and Jordan Poole.
While Poole struggled in the first four games of last season's NBA Finals, Wiggins flourished throughout. He particularly shone on defense against Boston Celtics superstar Jayson Tatum.
If Wiggins can build on his dazzling display on the league’s biggest stage, Golden State will be tough to beat in the coming years.