National Basketball Association

Andre Iguodala returning to Golden State for a fitting end to his career

Updated Oct. 1, 2021 1:24 p.m. ET

By Melissa Rohlin
FOX Sports NBA Writer

Andre Iguodala finishing his NBA career in Golden State is pure poetry.

It's where he fell in love with basketball again. It's where he found a coach who truly understands him. It's where he learned how to sacrifice. It's where he became a Finals MVP and a three-time champion. It's where he created his legacy.

And it's where he's returning after signing Friday to play his 18th pro season with the Warriors after two years away.

When I spoke to Iguodala in March, the 37-year-old, in the twilight of his career, was introspective.

He talked about how as a child, he never thought he could make the NBA. Even after he was selected as the ninth overall pick in the 2004 draft by the Philadelphia 76ers, he didn't truly think he belonged until Allen Iverson convinced him otherwise.

He talked about the pressure he felt to take over the team after Iverson was traded in 2006, acknowledging, "I had some moments where my confidence was a little shot or my mind wasn't in the right state."

And he talked about how everything changed for him when he was traded to Golden State in 2013.

It wasn't a seamless transition. Instead, it was a process in which he gained a deep trust for coach Steve Kerr, who asked him to make a major sacrifice.

Kerr wanted Iguodala to come off the bench for the first time in his career at the top of the 2014-2015 season. Even though Iguodala didn't like it, he understood it.

Both Iguodala and Kerr played under coach Lute Olson at the University of Arizona and see the game similarly.

"Steve and I come from the same basketball background in terms of how we viewed the game, how the game was taught to us," Iguodala told me at the time. "We spoke the same language. There's a lot of different basketball terminology out there, different languages within the game, and we spoke the same language."

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Still, it was difficult for Iguodala to accept not starting. It meant he had to change his game, reframe his mind and quiet his ego, tall tasks that would send many NBA players into a tailspin of hurt and resentment.

But Iguodala decided to embrace the challenge.

"I had a really good understanding of what [Kerr] was trying to accomplish," he said. "But it was tough for me because you're just so accustomed to having a rhythm, a flow of the game. And confidence plays a big part in that.

"My role changed, not just coming off the bench, but in terms of my focus on the court. It took me a while to really find the balance of being a facilitator and being on the attack, while still finding the flow of the ball movement in the beautiful way we came to gel as a group.

"So, it took me some time, but everything happens for a reason."

Instead of hanging his head and giving up, Iguodala decided to lock in harder.

And during 2015 NBA Finals against the Cleveland Cavaliers, he soared.

He came off the bench for the first three games before being moved into the starting lineup. Over that six-game series, Iguodala held LeBron James to 38.1% shooting and a minus-15.5 net rating when he was on the court, compared to James' 44% shooting and +18.8 rating when he was out of the game.

Iguodala was named Finals MVP after leading the Warriors to their first championship since 1975.

"That's why Andre will always be one of my favorites," Kerr said in February. "Just his selflessness and willingness to do whatever it takes to win the game."

Iguodala won two more championships with the Warriors in 2017 and 2018, before they dealt him to Memphis in July 2019, in part to make room to acquire D'Angelo Russell, who played one season in Golden State before being traded to Minnesota.

Dealing Iguodala was a painful decision for the Warriors, who knew that even though Stephen Curry, Klay Thompson and Draymond Green were the faces of their success, Iguodala was the heartbeat.

He did the little things that didn't show up in stat sheets, the things his teammates and coaches deeply admired but were largely invisible to the public, which often reduces a player's worth to how many points he scores.

The Iguodala effect is much more subtle. He intimidates players into passing the ball. He chases down passes, using his spectacular court vision to get from point A to point B in ways that stun even his teammates. And he alters the decision-making of all of his opponents with his incredible basketball IQ.

Iguodala never played for Memphis, something he says he and the team mutually agreed upon. Miami acquired him in February 2020, and he went on to help the Heat reach the NBA Finals that season and the first round of the playoffs last season while serving as a mentor to the team's young core.

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Iguodala's presence was deeply appreciated in Miami. Because of his championship pedigree, he immediately gained the respect of stars Jimmy Butler and Bam Adebayo, along with the rest of the team.

He became particularly close with young shooting guard Duncan Robinson.

In the NBA Bubble, Iguodala encouraged Robinson to leave his hotel room, get his mind off of basketball and seek more balance in his life. Robinson acknowledged he was initially reluctant because he was worried it could lead people to think he wasn't taking basketball seriously.

"Dude, leave your room, get some sun, go play golf," Robinson recalled Iguoadala telling him.

Iguodala always has devoted himself to being the best basketball player he can be while also realizing that being a basketball player doesn't define him. His interests are varied. He loves golf and investing, and he always has a book in his hands when he's not on the court.

When players were debating whether to leave the NBA Bubble during the playoffs after the Jacob Blake shooting by police in Wisconsin last August, Iguodala, who is Vice President of the National Basketball Players Association, was one of the most outspoken members during a players' only meeting that determined the fate of the postseason.

While some stars wanted to leave, Iguodala served as the voice for the voiceless, reminding everyone in that room that the financial impact of ending the season would be sorely felt by the league's role players.

For Iguodala, making sure everyone was represented at that moment was important. And according to people in that meeting, he delivered his message in a way everyone could hear it.

"I've just seen it all as a professional athlete, especially an African-American," Iguodala said. "You think about the movie 'He Got Game' and just everything that comes with being an African-American professional athlete, where we come from. There's so much put on us to try to be the savior of so many people, right or wrong.

"I've been on both sides of it. I've had the right message, I've had the wrong message. I've received the right message, and I've received the wrong message. There's just a lot of experience that's gone into it that's helped me where I am today."

Now Iguodala returns to the Warriors to deliver his final message, trying to help a team that went to the NBA Finals five straight seasons before missing the playoffs the last two amid a slew of injuries.

He'll be the veteran leader who will call out Green when he gets overly emotional. He'll be a role model for the team's young core, serving as a corporeal example of how sacrifice can lead to success. And he'll be a spark for the Warriors off the bench, using his experience and mind to outsmart players 15 years his junior.

When Iguodala left the Warriors, he constantly fielded questions about his time there. He said a lot of people thought, "We just came to work every day smiling and tossing the ball around and shooting some baskets and holding hands and it's all merry."

Then he'd tell them his story.

"There's a lot of work that went into it, a lot of bumps and bruises along the way that I just embraced and got through," he said. "And once I had the opportunity to be in an environment that I thought I could thrive in, going through what I've been through, good and bad, it was just perfect timing and a perfect match."

It should be the same fit again.

Melissa Rohlin is an NBA writer for FOX Sports. She has previously covered the league for Sports Illustrated, the Los Angeles Times, the Bay Area News Group and the San Antonio Express-News. Follow her on Twitter @melissarohlin.