Warriors believe motivated Wiggins primed for bounce-back season

Warriors believe motivated Wiggins primed for bounce-back season originally appeared on NBC Sports Bay Area

SAN FRANCISCO – More so than rising young up-and-comers Jonathan Kuminga and Brandin Podziemski, newcomers in De’Anthony Melton, Kyle Anderson and Buddy Hield, or anybody else on the roster, Andrew Wiggins is without a doubt the biggest X-factor in the Warriors digging themselves out of the loaded Western Conference and rising back into contention.

There’s no questioning what Steph Curry still can do after his superhero performance in the 2024 Paris Summer Olympics. Draymond Green, when locked in and available, still is one of basketball’s great minds and defensive players at 34 years.

Wiggins upon becoming a Warrior at the 2020 trade deadline began erasing the reputation he created during his five-plus years with the Minnesota Timberwolves as a disappointment of a former No. 1 overall draft pick, turning into a 2022 NBA All-Star and being the second-best player on a championship team months later.

After what undoubtedly was the worst season of his 10-year career, the Warriors are confident a “highly motivated” Wiggins is ready to put last year in the rearview mirror and prove detractors wrong again.

“I think he’d be the first to admit he didn’t have his best season,” Warriors general manager Mike Dunleavy said Thursday at Chase Center. “Been in the gym all summer. Can just sense a little bit of a different vibe from him this time of year. His body looks great. He’s in good shape, ready to go.”

While Wiggins has been back in the Bay Area for only a few days following the death of his father earlier this month, it didn’t take long for Steve Kerr to take notice of Wiggins on the court.

“He looks physically really fit,” Kerr said. “I think he also looks … just speaking with him, he sounds very motivated. He’s very much at peace. I think he’s in a place where he knows the last couple years have been tough for a lot of reasons, and I think he’s primed to get back to where he was a couple years ago.

“He’s at the age where he’s right in his physical prime, and we’ve seen him do it. He…

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Author : NBC Sports BayArea

Publish date : 2024-09-26 23:03:50

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