Andre Iguodala is playing some mind games with two of the Warriors’ playoff opponents from their failed quest at repeating as NBA champions.
Iguodala told Power 105.1 Radio in New York that the team that he thought played the Warriors the best wasn’t the eventual champion Cleveland Cavaliers, but the Oklahoma city Thunder.
“They were the best team last year in the league in the playoffs,” Iguodala said. “They should’ve won the championship.”
The Warriors came back from a 3-1 deficit against the Thunder to advance to the NBA Finals, while the Cavaliers came back from down 3-1 against the Warriors to win the NBA Championship.
It seems like Iguodala heaps more credit on a team that goes up 3-1 to begin with than the team that overcomes that deficit, which doesn’t make much sense on the surface.
However, in a league based on the specific matchup between two lineups, it’s easy to see where Iguodala is coming from. The Warriors seemed to be given more problems by the Thunder than the Cavaliers, mainly due to the tremendous offensive rebounding that provided the Thunder with numerous extra possessions to try to score.
Based on that perspective, then yes, the Thunder probably were the toughest team for the Warriors to play all things considered, but Iguodala’s comments downplay the remarkable comeback that the Cavaliers had to win the title.
In the same regard, it also downplays the incredible fortitude and mental toughness the Warriors showed to come back against the Thunder.
The Thunder presented a tougher matchup for the Warriors than the Cavaliers, but in a 7 game series, there’s ample time for a team to show they’re superior. The Cavaliers showed that they were the best team in the NBA.
Iguodala’s comments are simultaneously insulting to the Cavaliers and cruel to the Thunder, especially given the timing.
Iguodala even prefaced part of his claim by saying, “Now that we got KD, I can say it…” which is a sad reminder to Thunder fans about the fantastic team they had and now no longer possess.
Iguodala was present in the meetings for Durant, and it’s interesting to know that during his recruitment of Durant, he secretly thought that the Thunder were a better team than the Warriors, or at least played better than them in the playoffs.
If Durant’s main goal was to play on a team that gave him the best chance to win a championship, Iguodala’s comments are surprising if he didn’t think that his squad in Oklahoma City was capable of beating the Warriors going forward.
Of course, this Warriors team is certainly better on paper than the Thunder team now, so Durant still ended up in a location that gives him the best chance to win a championship.
It was the right choice from that perspective, but to be fair, had he gone to the Los Angeles Clippers or the San Antonio Spurs, either of those two teams could have arguably become the favorites to win the Western Conference next season. That’s how talented Durant is.
The Spurs won 67 games last season, and the Clippers have 3 all stars already. Again, though, Durant made the right choice because the Warriors were already the best team in the Western Conference without him, and now they’ve gotten even stronger.
Iguodala’s comments might end up having the most negative impact on Thunder fans than anybody else. Durant should feel secure that this is the best team he could have possibly ended up on.
The Cavaliers can just roll their eyes and know that all that matters is that they beat the team in front of them to win the championship.
This is especially painful for Thunder fans, though. These comments indicate that this Thunder team would have continued to compete for championships with Durant as a member. That’s all over now, though.
Had the Thunder been able to seal the deal against the Warriors and advance to the NBA Finals, maybe they would’ve beaten the Cavaliers. It’s certainly what Iguodala is implying.
Durant has drastically shifted the future of this league, and fans and players are having to deal with the eventual aftermath of this monumental decision. Iguodala is just speaking his mind, but it’s a painful reminder that Oklahoma City had a great thing going just a month ago, only to have it evaporate on July 4th.