The drumbeat out of the Warriors’ camp is getting louder for Andrew Wiggins.
Over the past couple of weeks, Wiggins’ production and bid for a first career All-Star Game invite has become a frequent topic of conversation. Warriors president of basketball operations and general manager Bob Myers joined 95.7 The Game’s “The Morning Roast: Executive Show” for his bi-weekly appearance to chime in on Wiggins’ candidacy. You can listen to the full interview below:
“He’s having a great year,” Myers told co-hosts Joe Shasky and Bonta Hill. “He’s probably a guy that coaches are going to have to vote in, I imagine. Because I don’t think he’ll be voted in as a starter. If he was, that would be great. You hope the coaches see it. We see it and I know Steve [Kerr] sees it and I think that his peers see it. Steph Curry, Draymond Green, they don’t lobby for nothing. Steph’s been to a ton of All-Star Games and he knows the league. This year’s interesting, there’s some big-name guys that have been injured or maybe haven’t had their best year. I haven’t gone through who the 12 guys are, but I don’t think you get 12, I think he’s before that. I’m a fan.”
For each conference, fans (50 percent), players (25 percent) and media (25 percent) will vote for two guards and three forwards to start in the midseason showcase. From there, the remaining seven reserves will be determined by a vote of the league’s 30 coaches.
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The Los Angeles Clippers have a talented duo on the roster, but Paul George is expected to be re-evaluated in 2-3 weeks with a ligament tear in his right elbow and Kawhi Leonard is a longshot to return from offseason ACL surgery.
From there, it’s up for debate. Anthony Edwards is an explosive fan favorite, Brandon Ingram is having a solid season on the Bayou and Wiggins is in the midst of a career year on the NBA’s best team. Wiggins is Golden State’s second-leading scorer (19.1 points per game) and has earned a reputation as an elite defender who often takes on the opposition’s top perimeter threat.
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Myers said he thinks Wiggs is worthy of joining Curry and Green in Cleveland, with the team’s league-leading 29-7 record a huge factor. The Warriors sent at least three players to the All-Star Game during each of their title-winning seasons from 2015-19.
“In my mind, he’s an All-Star no matter what categories you’re looking at,” Myers said. “I always look at the winning part, I probably value that more than most. So if you have one of the best records and you have three deserving guys, you should get three guys. Because your record shows and matters.”
Wiggins’ field goal percentages have been steadily climbing as the Warriors have tried to simplify his offensive approach. During his days with the Minnesota Timberwolves, Wiggins would often eat up possessions with dribbles and a low-percentage turnaround jumper. Golden State has tried to take the ball out of his hands and let him be more of a spot-up shooter, especially beyond the 3-point line.
Wiggins has bumped his field goal (49 percent), 3-point field goal (43.5 percent) and 3-pointers made (2.3 per game) production this season. His 3-point percentage ranks ninth in the NBA for players who have at least 75 attempts.
“A lot of people thought last year shooting-wise was kind of a one-off,” Myers said. “But he’s actually gotten better from three. His efficiency was a knock on him. When people didn’t like him, that would be a reason why. But his efficiency’s been great. I’m happy for the guy. He’s one of the best people on the team. His teammates love him, he’s a great teammate, he plays all the time. I know it would mean a lot to him. He probably would never say that, but I think he deserves it. It’s not charity, the guy gets it, he’s earned it.”
