It didn’t take long after Andre Iguodala’s return to the Warriors for his presence to show itself. Beyond what he does as a basketball player, his leadership shines. While he’s familiar with most of the team, there are new guys he looks forward to working with this season.
One in particular even shows similarities to his son.
Iguodala anticipates playing alongside Jordan Poole because of how boisterous he can be, but there’s another teammate he is excited to see on the court.
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"James Wiseman is the guy -- that’s the guy I’m most excited to play alongside,” Iguodala told NBC Sports Bay Area’s Kerith Burke last week at Warriors Media Day.
Iguodala compared Wiseman to his 14-year-old son, Andre II.
“They are the exact same,” Iguodala said. “Wiseman speaks Mandarin, [and] my son speaks French and a little bit of Spanish. Their confidence wavers the exact same way, they react to things not going their way the exact same way. So, this is like I will be a father full time now.”
Iguodala added a huge compliment about Wiseman and knows his future is bright.
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“James, he has no idea how good he’s going to be, but he wants to be great and asks the right questions," Iguodala said, "so I’m just looking forward to showing him how easy it’s going to be because sometimes you can work too hard, and sometimes you can move too fast, sometimes you can try to take on too much and just trying to help him see like as the mind is -- is a lot more effective in the body.
"Especially in the NBA and especially with your talent.”
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Wiseman finally can forgo his rookie duties entering his second NBA season. Last season, Draymond Green could be seen loudly guiding him on the court. Draymond did it out of love, of course, and even admitted how much of a future star the Memphis product is.
Iguodala has a softer approach, and after 16 seasons in the league, he’ll have plenty of knowledge to pass on to 20-year-old Wiseman, who has so much promise.