The power of K-pop stans is real. Just ask Andrew Wiggins.
The Warriors wing player earned a somewhat surprising start in the upcoming All-Star Game, thanks in large part to the support of wildly popular Korean pop star BamBam. Back on Jan. 7, BamBam sent out a Tweet to his nearly 10 million followers advocating for a Wiggins All-Star bid.
Last week, Wiggins joined Steph Curry, LeBron James, Ja Morant and Nikola Jokic as the All-Star game starters from the Western Conference. In Saturday’s 110-106 win over the Nets, Wiggins played a starring role with 24 points, eight rebounds, three steals and two blocks. Wiggins dominated the first quarter in particular, when he showed supreme confidence in his stroke and finished with 14 early points on 6-of-9 shooting.
Following the game, Wiggins fielded a couple of questions about the support he got from BamBam earlier in the month.
“I thought it was pretty cool,” Wiggins said. “He’s a pretty popular guy and he helped me get a ton of votes.”
Wiggins admitted that he didn’t know who BamBam was before he sent out the Jan. 7 tweet.
“But now I’ll never forget him,” Wiggins said.
Within minutes, videos of Wiggins’ postgame reaction Saturday night from @957TheGame on Twitter were blowing up with thousands of retweets and likes.
So, does Wiggins have K-pop in his music rotation?
“Not yet,” Wiggins said. “I’ll give it a chance, though. Especially BamBam.”
Aside from his stellar offensive production, Wiggins also spent time defending Kyrie Irving. According to ESPN’s Kendra Andrews, the Nets were 1-of-10 from the field Saturday when Wiggins was defending.
“Andrew was phenomenal tonight,” Warriors coach Steve Kerr said. “All over the place defensively and on offense he was our most consistent player. He carried us in the first half and he’s playing with amazing confidence and showing why he’s an All-Star.”
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Klay Thompson took it a step further when it came to his endorsement for Wiggins.
"Andrew's on a path to be an All-NBA player the way he affects the game on both sides," Thompson said.
Asked if he's heard the doubts and chatter about his starter selection, Wiggins shrugged it off.
"You hear it," Wiggins said. "But, I came a long way. I've had a lot of ups and downs. I come in here, I hoop, I go home and play with my kids and my daughter and sleep, in that order. Like I said, I just hoop. I don't worry about the outside mess."
