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Andrew Wiggins was the breakout star of the Warriors’ championship run, playing important perimeter defense and complementing Stephen Curry’s offense throughout.
The small forward has one year left before reaching free agency, but he said he doesn’t want to go anywhere.
“I would love to stay here,” Wiggins said, via ESPN’s Kendra Andrews. “Being here, this is top-notch. The way they treat the players. …. We’re all one big family. I feel like a lot of places may say that, but they show it through their actions.”
Wiggins spent his first five seasons with the Timberwolves, which included winning the 2014-15 Rookie of the Year award. However, despite putting up solid numbers, Wiggins was viewed as a liability because of the size of that deal, and many people didn’t think he could contribute to a championship.
Golden State acquired Wiggins at the trade deadline in 2019 believing that the former No. 1 pick could play to his potential, and Wiggins repaid their faith with his playoff performance this year.
Wiggins heard all of the criticism about his play, and now he is happy to have proved all of it wrong.
“There was a lot of talk, people have something to say about every little thing, but now I'm happy that I made it here,” Wiggins said. “People didn’t think I could ever be in this position or even be helpful on a championship team. But I’m proving the doubters wrong and I’m going to keep it going.”
Wiggins averaged 16.5 points and 7.5 rebounds a game in the playoffs, but his most important performance was in Game 5 of the NBA Finals when he totaled 26 points and 13 rebounds, leading the team in both categories.
