Hey Jack, it’s a fact: 1) Paprika is for men. 5) You snooze, you lose. B) ReSpEk ThE SuN. VII) Wiggins is an All-Star! What a time to be alive, especially if you are Andrew Wiggins. And watching this slow-moving transition has been quite the experience, filled with a bunch of memes and “what?” mutterings thrown about. From a young and a wild shooting wing several years ago to perhaps one of the better three-and-d players right now is quite the journey, and take it from this writer, the next stage should probably be an All-Star appearance (his first)…no? Okay, okay, that might be going a little too far, but what this post presupposes is, what if I’m not? This calls for a jiggy jump! You know, because the “Gettin’ Jiggy Wit It” reference and jumping from the lede to the full post with the link below… yeah, exactly.
Want the best tools and projections to help dominate your league? Check out the Stocktonator, the byproduct of Rudy and machine making love. Click HERE for a FREE 3-day trial.
So look, the All-Star label *is* probably a stretch, but not in the way I’d normally admit. I do think Wiggin’s performance this season should net him his first selection, but the rational side of me thinks that the spot will just be too hard to get to without some injuries. Just off the top of my head, I’ve got PG-13, AD, LeBron, Gobert, Draymond, KAT, Ayton, Porzingis, Barnes, and that’s not even talking about guards like his fellow teammate Steph Curry, Chris Paul, or even Luka. Never say never again, but I’d at least say that if Wiggins continues on his current course, he’d be performing better than probably a third of those names right off the bat. But that’s a reference from the wrong sport, so time to get back on track. Which is a train reference, so that’s fine.
As alluded to above (I AM THE ALLUSTIONIST), who Wiggins is now wasn’t always who he was back then. Making his name as a volume shooter, his value was tied directly into minutes played and shots created and that’s. About. It. There really wasn’t anything else to his game, and it showed in his only defining trait: inefficient raw scoring.
Now, a lot can be said about the breadth of changes in his game today based on that snippet in time. You could argue that he’s way more active on the floor in many facets, better rebounding, smarter passing, and of course, a strong uptick on defense. But the biggest change in his game has been that his inefficient raw scoring has now turned into efficient raw scoring, and it’s as simple as that. For the 21-22 season, he’s posted both a career-high in shooting percentage for both two-pointers (48.8%) and three-pointers (41.6%), also marking a trend of improvement for every year he’s been with the Warriors. Not for nothing, but while his points-per-game may not be eclipsing his historic averages, this is more due to playing slightly fewer minutes compared to his time in Minnesota. Wiggins is still netting 22.2 points per 36 minutes, the third-highest number over his career.
But will it last? I’m obviously tempted to say yes, or why else would I be expanding my precious word count? It’s no secret that the return of Steph Curry and Draymond Green has made a difference. Another factor that may go unnoticed is that there is a strategy in place here to directly create more opportunities for him in transition, allowing him to use cuts and spot-ups to create better shots. Take for example this past Monday night where Wiggins scored 28 points. He had the ball in his hand for just two minutes total.
It’s probably a bit simpleton to point out, but I’d feel remiss if I didn’t mention that coaching is a big deal too, and it seems that the Warriors have found the best role and created a strategy that facilitates his play. Well, not just facilities, but augments it too. And that’s a great sign, knowing that a player is improving based on a design that’s being implemented not just by his growth as a player, but with a system on a team that has amazing players and a great coaching staff.
So yeah, granted, it’s taken a while. Wiggins was always that player you thought to yourself “What? Why isn’t he better?” or “What? He’s never going to get better?” and yet he’s still just 26 years old. I’m not going to say the sky’s the limit here, he’s a good player who’s found a role and a team that can utilize him the best. If what we have here now is the end result, we should all be so happy that this once hyped draft pick has found a niche and is expanding on it as we speak. Or I guess it’d be write. Whatever.
Andrew Wiggins; Superstar? Maybe not. But All-Star? Yeah, I think so…
Jay is a longtime Razzball everything who consumes an egregious amount of Makers Mark as a vehicle to gain wisdom and augment his natural glow. Living in the D.C. area, he also likes spending time visiting the local parks and feeding lettuce to any turtles he encounters, including Mitch McConnell. You can follow him on Twitter @jaywrong.
