In the 2004 draft, Philadelphia selected Andre Iguodala with the 9th pick in the first round, intending to use him to make up for the lack of the team's forward position. At that time, with his excellent physical talent + instant combat strength, Iguodala was able to contribute 9.0 points, 5.7 boards, 3.0 assists, and 49.3% shooting percentage in the first season of his career, which almost established his team's starting position.
In the following years, Iguodala was by Iverson's side, relying on his own talent and hard work, in the 07-08 season, he played 19.9 points, 5.4 boards, 4.8 assists, 45.6% shooting rate of quasi-All-Star stats; even after Iverson left, Iguodala became the "Philadelphia boss" for a time...
Unfortunately, although Iguodala's physical talent is good, in terms of his playing style and talent ceiling, it is not suitable to become the absolute core of a team, but more suitable for becoming a "jigsaw puzzle player". So four seasons after Iverson left Philadelphia, Philadelphia, who was preparing to rebuild, traded Iguodala to the Nuggets, and then he joined the Warriors in 13 years.
In the first season of joining the Warriors, compared with the peak of the performance of 18 + 5.5 + 5, Iguodala's personal performance directly fell to 9.3 points, 4.7 boards and 4.2 assists; so at that time, many people believed that the nearly 30-year-old Iguodala had ushered in a "decline period", and it was difficult for him to have a bright personal performance after that.
Especially after Kerr officially joined the Warriors, for the sake of playing style and personal status, Iguodala was sent to the bench. For Iguodala, who had never been sent off the bench in his career at that time, being sent off the bench by Cole seemed to confirm the speculation that Iguodala was "not ok" and no longer had the strength of a starter.
'15 playoffs: When the Warriors were in trouble, Iguodala stepped up
In the 14-15 season, the Warriors relied on the advanced small-ball system + the accurate three-pointers of the Splash Brothers, not only played the first record of 67 wins and 15 losses in the league during the regular season, but also defeated the Pelicans, Grizzlies and Rockets in the playoffs and rushed to the Finals. At that time, the slightly "childish" Splash brothers, facing James, who had played in the Finals five times, even if Luck and Irving were injured, they also fell behind (1-2 behind the Cavaliers).
Fortunately, Kerr then boldly changed sides - put Iguodala on the team's starting lineup and used him to defend James. After entering the Warriors' starting lineup, Iguodala not only did a good enough job on the defensive end, but also scored 20+ in two games on the offensive end, becoming the "miracle soldier" of that series, and eventually helped the team win three consecutive games and win the championship trophy.
Even in the end, Iguodala won the FMVP trophy with 16.3 points, 5.8 boards, 4.0 assists, and 52.1% shooting percentage, after helping the Warriors win the championship, force Curry (26.0 points, 5.2 boards and 6.3 assists) to win the FMVP trophy.
However, after 15 years of the Finals, with the growth of Green and Thompson, Curry played a phenomenal performance, Iguodala's role in the Warriors seems to be smaller and smaller, and it is becoming more and more inclined to the "spiritual level". Especially with the addition of Durant, with four all-Star players of the current year, Iguodala's role has been infinitely "weakened".
But even in the 15-19 season, the Warriors' core lineup is strong enough, but in the playoffs in 16, 17, 18, 19 years, whenever Durant, Curry, Thompson's offensive end is briefly "dud", whenever the team is in trouble;
Iguodala, who performed badly in the regular season, can always "break out" at the right time at a critical moment to help the team stabilize the situation - and even always put on a "since you don't want FMVP, then I'm not welcome" face.
21 years offseason: After many teams, Iguodala returned to the Warriors
As the saying goes: the world is full of feasts - after the 19-year Finals, due to the maximum salary to renew Thompson, Green, coupled with Curry's big contract, directly led to the Warriors salary space is tight. Management traded Iguodala to the Grizzlies to try to make room for the team to re-strengthen. However, the Grizzlies at the time were intent on cultivating young people and did not give Iguodala a chance to play, and finally in a no-game situation, Iguodala was traded by the Grizzlies to the Heat at the end of the season.
In the heat's first season, Iguodala contributed 4.6 points, 3.7 boards, 2.4 assists, 43.2% shooting percentage of the individual performance; and in the Eastern Conference Finals, 5 of 5 shots, 15 points, 3 boards, 2 breaks and 1 assist performance, successfully helped the Heat to advance.
Perhaps because of the "brilliant achievements" of the Iguodala Warriors period, or perhaps because of his rich playoff experience, the Heat management even prepared a 2-year, 30 million early contract renewal contract for Iguodala.
Unfortunately, in the heat for more than a year, Iguodala has never played out, nor has he been able to reproduce the glory of the Warriors. So with Iguodala's age + limited help to the team, the Heat management chose to stop the loss in time - refusing to execute Iguodala's team option for the 2021-22 season, and the Warriors management also successfully seized this opportunity, with only a veteran base salary to bring back Iguodala...
After returning to the Warriors, Iguodala, who thought that "there was no oil in the fuel tank", joined the Warriors and could only play a "mascot" role, and Iguodala played a good personal performance. So far in the new season, although Iguodala only has 4.7 points, 3.6 boards, 4.1 assists, and 42.7% shooting percentage, his role and significance to the Warriors at both ends of the offensive and defensive ends are by no means what the data can show.
So, whenever he thinks that "one brother" can't do it, why can he always rejuvenate the second spring in the Warriors?
1. The team system is different, and the role players have more room to play in the Warriors. The reason why the Heat chose to sign Iguodala, who did not play for most of the season at the end of the season, is that he did not expect much immediate power for the team. Instead, he is counting on his extensive playoff experience to help the Heat take it a step further in the playoffs in key games or pivotal moments. So in regular time, Iguodala doesn't actually have much room to play.
The reason why the Warriors signed Iguodala is that they hope that while he can contribute, he can also help young players grow up quickly. And Iguodala is familiar with the operation of the Warriors system, coupled with the Warriors' passing system can stimulate the potential of players and have more opportunities to play personally.
Therefore, in the Warrior system, in fact, as long as you find the correct positioning and seize the opportunity to counterattack, it is easy to play a good personal performance. After all, Poole, Wiggins, Damien-Lee and others have played a good personal performance under such a system.
It is precisely because of the different team systems and different requirements that Iguodala, who returned to the Warriors, played a better personal performance than when he had enough performance opportunities.
2. The blessing of "library gravity" makes it easier for role players to play. If Cole creates a passing system, it gives role players enough room to play. Then Curry's strong three-point ability + selfless playing style makes it easier for role players to play on the court, and the system cole has created can be described as complementary.
Although Butler's style of play is not selfish, it is difficult for him to let his teammates have the opportunity to shoot easily, so although the overall strength of the Heat is strong, it is always difficult for anyone to play beyond the norm.
But Curry is different, he neither holds the ball a lot, nor does he shoot a lot of shots - he can even do no-ball demolition for his teammates, and he can use his powerful three-point ability to help teammates attract defenses and give teammates easier shooting space. That is to say, Iguodala can always impress the Warriors, which is not an unexpected result, but inevitable.
In summary, it is precisely because of the "Warriors' system suitable for role players to play + Curry's selfless playing style", Iguodala can repeatedly play a brilliant personal performance in the Warriors when people think he is "not ok", thus rejuvenating the second spring of his career. After all, it's not just Iguodala who benefits from the Warriors system, but even Poole, Damien Lee, Payton Jr. and others have also played extraordinary personal performances around the Warriors system and Curry...