Coolness of direction and heat on the court take Warriors back to the top of the NBA

NBA champions in 2015, 2017 and 2018, the Golden State Warriors saw their dynasty fall apart in the 2019 finals, with the serious injuries of Kevin Durant and Klay Thompson and the departure of the former after the loss to the Toronto Raptors. Four years after the last title, the Californian team is again the owner of the North American basketball league.

Steve Kerr’s team won the 2021/22 season title with a 103-90 win over the Boston Celtics on Thursday night (16th) in Boston. He ended the decisive series 4-2 and lifted the Larry O’Brien trophy again, a return to glory that was only possible thanks to the coldness of the direction to make tough choices and the warmth of an athlete once considered cold.

Andrew Wiggins, 27, isn’t the best player for the Warriors, a team that looks like Stephen Curry, 34. But Golden State wouldn’t have returned to the top without the winger’s work, who was treated as a wasted talent, someone who didn’t seem to like the sport enough to become an impact player.

The Canadian’s impact, however, was noticeable in the final. His strength in defense proved to be essential to stop the main talent of the opponent, the winger Jayson Tatum, 24. And, when it was necessary for him to assume greater responsibility in the attack – as in the fundamental game 5, of atypical imprecision of Curry –, he did it. .

“I’ve always been a competitor, I’ve always wanted to win. That should never have been questioned,” said Wiggins. “I was just on a losing team. Now I’m on a winning team. So people appreciate it more, it’s what winning does. Everyone wants to win, but not everyone can. And people respect winners. But, I repeat, it should never have been questioned.”

He was.

Selected first in “draft”, the NBA’s rookie recruiting system, in 2014, the player was immediately traded for veteran Kevin Love, who helped LeBron James to be champion in the Cleveland Cavaliers. He was treated as the name of the future of the Minnesota Timberwolves, something that did not materialize.

There were repeated failures and only one appearance in the playoffs, in 2018, with a 4-1 defeat in the first round. So, the Timberwolves management gave up the duo that never mesh, staying with Karl-Anthony Towns and releasing Andrew to the Warriors – at the time owners of the worst record in the league.

The athlete’s arrival at Golden State was not registered as a great reinforcement. He looked more like a sideways move from the Bay Area, California team. But from adjustment to adjustment, the team has reshaped itself as one of the strengths of the championship, something solidified by the rise of youngsters like Jordan Poole, 22, and the physical recovery of Thompson, 32.

Along the way, there were difficult decisions. In the aftermath of the 2019 Finals catastrophe, President of Basketball Operations Bob Myers had a heart-to-heart with Andre Iguodala, franchise icon and 2015 Finals Player of the Year, saying, “Look, maybe we have to trade it”.

“I was devastated. I thought, ‘Oh my God, we’re losing some of our soul,'” recalled coach Steve Kerr, who, like Curry, initially struggled to understand the Memphis Grizzlies deal. “That’s why coaches shouldn’t accumulate the role of manager. If I had been in charge, I wouldn’t have made the deal. And I wouldn’t be here with Wiggins.”

Under the NBA’s collective salary cap system, keeping Iguodala would limit the roster’s architecture and prevent its rejuvenation. Andre left. And in the wake of Durant, who decided to play for the Brooklyn Nets, the Warriors landed a trade that gave them D’Angelo Russell, then a 23-year-old point guard with growth potential.

If Russell didn’t work, as his playing style clashed with Curry’s, there would be interested parties for another trade. That’s what happened, and D’Angelo ended up in Minnesota. It was part of the deal that brought Andrew Wiggins to Golden State and allowed the Warriors to reach their seventh league title – now trailing only the Los Angeles Lakers and Boston Celtics, both with 17.

Whether the criticism is fair or not, Wiggins began to show the competitive spirit that detractors did not see, especially this season, which earned him a call-up to the All-Star Game. Surrounded by champions and an exceptional coach, he dropped the “bust” label, as Americans call athletes who start their careers with high expectations and disappoint.

“It’s a winning culture. They’ve won before and dominated the NBA. So when I arrived, they put me in a position to succeed. They always bring out the best in you and want the best for you. There are no egos, everyone is worried about you. win. And they give support, they help”, said the Canadian.

If he didn’t instantly become a Draymond Green, 32, who is the heart of the Warriors and always plays at high voltage, Andrew started to show more vibrancy on the court – although he says nothing has changed. In Game 5, the night in which Curry hit zero of the nine three-pointers he tried, Wiggins decided with 26 points and 13 rebounds. The victory was practically sealed in a dunk in which he screamed fiercely, facing rivals.

One triumph was missing, and the Warriors decided not to wait for the seventh game, which would again be in San Francisco. Acting in Boston, they proved to be the most experienced team, dominated most of the actions and won, with Stephen Curry again Stephen Curry: 34 points, seven assists, seven rebounds, six hits of three in 11 shots.

When the timer stopped, in front of a crestfallen gymnasium, Andrew Wiggins jumped in glee. I was with him at the party Andre Iguodala, 38, who understood why he needed to leave in 2019 and returned as a supporting player, occasionally called on to contribute for brief minutes in matches.

The cold exchange that took “part of the soul” out of Golden State, as Kerr described it, allowed the Warriors to play hot against the Boston Celtics.