There is not much argument when it comes to who the best small forward on the Golden State Warriors is. Andre Iguodala became the clear-cut starter once he was acquired via trade from the Denver Nuggets. After 3rd year man Harrison Barnes struggled in his sophomore season, it was affirmed that the Warriors had the best possible option starting at the small forward position.
Now that new head coach Steve Kerr is in charge, he seems to be in favor of taking the NBA All-Defensive First Team player out of the starting five, and it may not be such a bad decision.
In Sunday night’s preseason win over the Los Angeles Lakers, Coach Kerr experimented with Iguodala starting the game on the pine, and instead inserted Barnes in at the “3” (small forward).
In 21 minutes, Iguodala chipped in only 4 points, but did have 8 assists and 0 turnovers, all while coming off the bench.
At practice yesterday, he talked about how that new role felt.
“It doesn’t matter to me who I’m playing with, I think I’m going to make anyone better,” Iguodala told reporters, “When I’m out there playing basketball it’s just ‘let me do me’ and everyone is going to benefit.”
When asked if he cares is he starts or not, Iguodala seemed not quite ready to fully concede the starting spot.
“Do I care? I don’t know that’s a good question. [I’m] just playing ball you know, not trying to make a big deal out of it. I’ve been in the league a long time,” Iguodala said, “There’s just a lot of stories about anything. You know, I have my shoes tied the wrong way, that could become a story.
“We’re trying not to make it a story this year. We’re trying to win a championship.”
Coach Kerr seemed to be impressed by Iguodala’s performance with the second unit, and spoke about how permanent that role may be.
“I thought Andre was brilliant,” Kerr said after practice. “I don’t know if that’s the route we’re going to go, but he solidified that unit and our lead went up when we subbed in, which was encouraging.”
After having one of the leagues worst bench units last season, making the switch could bolster the subs, but taking Iguodala out of the starting five could mean a decrease in production from the starters. In 758 career regular season games, Iguodala has never come off the bench.
The Warriors will hit the floor on Thursday October, 16 against the Denver Nuggets and Coach Kerr announced today after practice that Barnes would start and Iguodala would come off the bench again.
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