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Andre Iguodala: Basketball Player

Andre Tyler Iguodala; born January 28, 1984) is an American professional basketball player for the Memphis Grizzlies of the National Basketball Association (NBA). The swingman was an NBA All-Star in 2012 and has been named to the NBA All-Defensive Team twice. He won three NBA championships with the Golden State Warriors and was named the NBA Finals Most Valuable Player (MVP) in 2015. He was also a member of the United States national team at the 2010 FIBA World Championship and 2012 Summer Olympics, winning the gold medal both times.

Iguodala played college basketball with the Arizona Wildcats. After earning first-team all-conference honours in the Pac-10 (known now as the Pac-12) as a sophomore in 2004, he was selected in the 2004 NBA draft with the ninth overall pick by the Philadelphia 76ers. Iguodala played for Philadelphia until the summer of 2012, when he joined the Denver Nuggets in a four-team trade. He was acquired by Golden State in 2013. In 2014–15, he became a reserve for the first time in his career but captured the Finals MVP after returning to the starting lineup in the middle of the championship series.

Early life and high school career

Iguodala was born in Springfield, Illinois. He is the son of Linda Shanklin. His older brother, Frank, played for Lake Land College in Mattoon, Illinois, and Dayton. His mother is African American, while his father is Nigerian. Growing up, Iguodala rooted for the Chicago Bulls, and he cites Michael Jordan as the player he looked up to.

Iguodala attended high school at Lanphier High School in Springfield, Illinois, a school that produced other notable athletes, including baseball Hall of Famer Robin Roberts and basketball guard Kevin Gamble. At Lanphier he did well academically and athletically; he won All-Conference academic honours, was on the National Honor Roll, was a State Journal Student-Athlete of the Week several times, and gained three letters in track for the high jump. As a senior in 2002, Iguodala led Lanphier’s basketball team to a runner-up finish at the Illinois High School Association Class AA state tournament. That season, he averaged 23.5 points, 7.8 rebounds and 4.1 assists per game. He was named Chicago Sun-Times Player of the Year as well as a second-team Parade All-American and Nike All-American. Iguodala was also a finalist for the Illinois Mr Basketball award, which was awarded to Dee Brown. His Lanphier jersey is now retired.

During the summer of 2000, Iguodala captured the attention of coaches around the nation as he was named the AAU national tournament Most Valuable Player after hitting the game-winning shot at the final buzzer to give his team the 17-and-under national title. In 2002, he played in the Jordan Brand Classic in Washington, D.C. In 22 minutes of play, Iguodala put up six points on 3–6 shooting, five rebounds, two assists, three steals and a block. Iguodala played AAU basketball under Larry Butler and the Illinois Warriors, the team that has featured other professional players such as Dwyane Wade, Quentin Richardson, and Jon Scheyer.

Considered a four-star recruit by Scout.com, Iguodala was listed as the No. 6 small forward and the No. 26 player in the nation in 2002.

College career

Iguodala initially signed a National Letter of Intent to play at Arkansas. He had narrowed down his list of desired schools to two: Kansas or Arkansas. Iguodala was enticed by Arkansas’s 1–3 system, which would have allowed Iguodala to run the point occasionally. Iguodala visited the Arkansas campus and was impressed by their large gymnasium and the number of fans at a practice while he visited with his mother and father. However, after their coach, Nolan Richardson was fired that year (2002), Iguodala decided to attend Arizona instead. At Arizona, he joined future NBA players Channing Frye, Luke Walton, Mustafa Shakur, Salim Stoudamire and Hassan Adams. One of the determining factors for Iguodala was the commitment of Hassan Adams, whom Iguodala had played within the Jordan Brand Classic in high school. Many colleges regarded Iguodala as a track star turned basketball player but teammate Luke Walton said, “He is going to be one of the best players to ever come out of Arizona by the time he is done here”. He was named to the Pac-10 All-Freshmen team for 2002–03. In his freshman year he quickly established himself as one of the best all-around players on the team, ranking in the top 5 for his team in just about every major category.

As a sophomore in 2003–04, Iguodala was named team MVP after leading his team in rebounds, assists and steals. He also made the All-Pac-10 First Team and was named Honorable Mention All-America by The Associated Press. He collected three triple-doubles that season, joining Jason Kidd as the only two players in Pac-10 history to post two or more triple-doubles in a season. During his career at Arizona, the Wildcats made it to the NCAA Tournament both seasons. In his freshman year, the Wildcats were defeated in the Elite Eight by Kansas. In his sophomore year, Arizona was defeated in the first round by Seton Hall. After posting career totals of 594 points (9.6 ppg), 409 rebounds (6.6 RPG) and 95 steals (1.53 SPG) in 62 games (34 starts) he left to enter the NBA draft. At Arizona, Iguodala planned to major in education. After the season, Iguodala signed with agent Rob Pelinka, co-founder of the Landmark Sports Agency, who had represented NBA All-Stars such as Kobe Bryant, Carlos Boozer and Gerald Wallace.

Professional career

Philadelphia 76ers (2004–2012)

Rookie season

Iguodala was selected 9th overall in the 2004 NBA draft by the Philadelphia 76ers. When Iguodala was selected, ESPN personality Dick Vitale commented that it was a mistake for the Sixers to take him, saying “Iguodala was a [27 per cent] shooter from the college three-point line. He’s not going to be able to play”, Iguodala used this as motivation in what proved to be a very productive rookie season. Iguodala was thrust into the starting lineup immediately during his rookie season and was the only 76er to play and start all 82 regular-season games plus 5 playoff games, becoming a favourite target of Allen Iverson in the process, often connecting on highlight-reel dunks on passes or alley-oops from Iverson. Iguodala proved his versatility, as he was the only rookie and 76er to record a triple-double that season, doing it against the defending champion Detroit Pistons. In the game, he scored 10 points, caught 10 rebounds and dished out 10 assists. During the season, he averaged 9 points, 5.7 rebounds, 3 assists, 1.7 steals, and 32.8 minutes per game. His efforts were rewarded when he was named to the All-Rookie First Team and started on the rookie team during the Rookie Challenge portion of All-Star Weekend. He finished fourth in voting for NBA Rookie of the Year.

Sophomore season

Now a permanent fixture in the 76ers starting rotation, Iguodala was the only Sixer to play in and start all 82 games in his second season. On February 17, 2006, at the Rookie Challenge, Iguodala won MVP honours for his 30-point performance in the Sophomores win. A day later, he participated in the Slam Dunk Contest. His first dunk was a simple windmill, but then for his second dunk, he received a pass from Allen Iverson off the backside of the backboard, then leapt under the board and put in the reverse on the other side and was awarded a perfect score of 50 points. In the final round, he did a behind-the-back dunk and followed with a reverse. The award, however, was given to Nate Robinson, in a controversial decision, as Robinson had missed 14 straight dunk attempts before hitting his final one. Iguodala averaged 12.3 points and 5.9 rebounds on the season.

2006–07 season

After Allen Iverson was traded to the Denver Nuggets and Chris Webber was released, Iguodala would have to get accustomed to his new leadership role with the 76ers. At the time of Webber’s release, the Sixers were 9–26 (Iverson only played 15 games before he was traded). With Iguodala now averaging 40.3 minutes per game, he led the Sixers on a late-season run, finishing the rest of the season 26–21 and almost clinching the 8th seed in the Eastern Conference playoffs (although their late run came more as a result of other teams “tanking” to secure a higher draft pick).^[22] He went on to finish the season with averages of 18.2 points, along with 5.7 rebounds and 5.7 assists. He was one of four players to average at least 18 points, 5 rebounds, and 5 assists, with the others being LeBron James, Kobe Bryant, and Tracy McGrady.

2007–08 season

Iguodala got off to a slow start to the season, even to a point where he was leading the league in turnovers. He began to step up his game as the season went on, leading Philadelphia to a playoff berth. The 76ers finished the season at 40–42, winning 22 of their last 29 games and earning a playoff spot with a victory over the Atlanta Hawks on April 4. Iguodala averaged a career-high 19.9 points, 5.4 rebounds, and 4.8 assists per game through the 82 games. Philadelphia was set to face the #2 seed Detroit. In the playoffs the Sixers lost in the first round to the Pistons in 6 games after leading the series 2–1. Iguodala had a poor playoffs series, averaging 13 points per game. On August 12, 2008, Iguodala reportedly agreed to a six-year, $80 million contract extension with the Sixers. He officially signed on August 17, 2008. The contract had $5 million in bonuses and a player option for the sixth year.

2008–09 season

Early on in the year, Iguodala was on a Sixers team with high expectations after signing All-Star forward Elton Brand and seeing the success of forward Thaddeus Young, whom they drafted with their lottery pick the prior year. Iguodala developed into more of a primary player in the 2008–09 season, becoming more active as a facilitator on the offensive end of the floor. Early into the season, Philadelphia was struggling, which led to the departure of head coach Maurice Cheeks. The 76ers played much better basketball under Tony DiLeo. In his last year with co-captain and veteran point guard Andre Miller, Iguodala helped lead the Sixers to another playoff berth, finishing the season with a 41–41 season record, 6th in the Eastern Conference. In the playoffs, the 76ers were set to face the third seed Orlando Magic. In Game 1, Orlando had an 18-point lead in the fourth quarter, but Philadelphia made an amazing comeback led by Iguodala, eventually scoring a step-back, fadeaway jumper in the face of Hedo Türkoğlu with 2.2 seconds remaining to give the Sixers the win. Unfortunately, the Sixers eventually fell to the Magic in the Playoffs, failing to reach the second round. Iguodala had averaged 18.8 points, 5.7 rebounds, and 5.3 assists per game through 82 regular-season games.

2009–10 season

In the preseason Philadelphia drafted point guard Jrue Holiday out of UCLA to take over the void left at point guard after the departure of veteran point guard Andre Miller, who had joined the Portland Trail Blazers. The Sixers hired coach Eddie Jordan to take over for Tony DiLeo. Iguodala averaged career-highs in rebounds, assists, and blocks, and a career-low in personal fouls. He finished the season averaging 17.1 ppg, 6.5 rpg, 5.8 apg, and 1.7 SPG. The Sixers, however, were a big disappointment, going only 27–55 during the regular season and missing the playoffs after two straight playoff berths. During the season the 76ers brought Iguodala’s old friend Allen Iverson back in what would be his final season in the NBA before going to play overseas for Beşiktaş.

2010–11 season

Coming into the 2010–11 NBA season, the 76ers were expected to rebound from their poor season. The Sixers fired head coach Eddie Jordan and brought in Doug Collins. Philadelphia also traded veteran big man Samuel Dalembert to the Sacramento Kings for a younger centre Spencer Hawes; the 76ers also acquired Andrés Nocioni in the deal. With the second overall pick in the draft, the Sixers made a big splash by drafting Evan Turner. Philadelphia started the season poorly but were one of the best teams down the stretch. During the season, Iguodala was hampered by an Achilles injury, leading to career lows in games played and started, field-goal percentage, free-throw percentage, and steals per game as the 76ers finished with a 41–41 record. However, he also had his career-best season in assists with 6.3 apg and helped the Sixers make the playoffs with the seventh seed in the Eastern Conference. During the year, Andre was the subject of multiple trade rumours that had him being traded to either the Golden State Warriors, Los Angeles Clippers or Los Angeles Lakers. In the playoffs, Iguodala had the assignment of guarding LeBron James and Dwyane Wade in the first round. The 76ers were eventually defeated in 5 games. For his defensive efforts throughout the season, Iguodala was named to the NBA All-Defensive Team Second Team, though his coaches and teammates lobbied for him to make the First Team. He showed his versatility during the season posting up a career-high in triple-doubles. Iguodala was second behind LeBron James for most triple-doubles during the 2010–11 season.

2011–12 season: All-Star selection

During the 2011 NBA lockout, Iguodala had a week-long internship with Merrill Lynch.

On his 28th birthday, Iguodala recorded a 10-point, 10-rebound, 10-assist triple-double effort in a win over the Pistons. Later that season, he was selected to his first All-Star Game as a reserve. His scoring average was the lowest of all the 24 All-Stars, but he was rewarded for being the best player on the 76ers, who were leading the Atlantic Division. Collins called him a “stat-sheet stuffer”. At the end of the 2011–12 NBA season, Iguodala averaged 12.4 ppg, 6.1 rpg, 5.5 apg, 1.7 spg in 35.6 mpg. He helped the Philadelphia 76ers clinch the final seed in the playoffs. In-Game 6 of the Sixers’ first-round playoff series against the Chicago Bulls, he made two free throws with 2.2 seconds left to win the game and help the Sixers upset the Bulls en route to the franchise’s first playoff series win since 2003. This was also the fifth time in NBA history that an eighth seed defeated the first seed in the opening round of the playoffs. They were eventually eliminated by the Boston Celtics in a thrilling seven games in the Conference Semifinals.

Denver Nuggets (2012–2013)

On August 10, 2012, Andre was dealt to the Denver Nuggets in a series of trades also involving the Sixers, Los Angeles Lakers, and Orlando Magic. Other players involved in the deal included All-Stars Andrew Bynum and Dwight Howard. His arrival in Denver led to some league experts labelling Denver a contender. Iguodala returned on opening night of 2012–13 to play his former team. He put up 11 points in an 84–75 loss and received a mixed response from the crowd. The Nuggets went on to make the playoffs with a franchise-record 57-25, and a team record 15 consecutive wins. However, they were upset in the first round by the Golden State Warriors, despite Iguodala having a good series, averaging 18 points, 8 rebounds, 5.3 assists and 2 steals per game in the series. This led to the firing of Nuggets coach George Karl, who just won the NBA Coach of the Year Award.

Golden State Warriors (2013–2019)

2013–14 season

On July 5, 2013, Iguodala reportedly agreed to a four-year, $48 million deal with the Golden State Warriors. Iguodala officially joined the team on July 10 as part of a three-team trade involving the Denver Nuggets and the Utah Jazz. On November 14, Iguodala made the game-winning, buzzer-beating shot in the Warriors’ 116-115 win over the Oklahoma City Thunder. Getting the inbound pass from Klay Thompson, Iguodala turned and made the fade-away jump shot over the Thunder’s Thabo Sefolosha. Iguodala finished with 14 points and 9 assists. When playing against the Los Angeles Lakers on November 23, 2013, Iguodala strained his left hamstring late in the third quarter. Unfortunately, Iguodala went on to miss twelve consecutive games. However, on December 17, 2013, Iguodala returned to action in a game against the New Orleans Pelicans. On January 3, 2014, Iguodala hit a game-winning, 3-point buzzer-beater in the Warriors’ 101–100 win over the Atlanta Hawks. The win extended the Warriors’ season-high winning streak to 8 games. For his defensive contributions to the Warriors, Iguodala was named to the 2014 All-NBA Defensive first team.

2014–15 season: Finals MVP

Entering the 2014–15 season, first-year Warriors coach Steve Kerr elected to move Iguodala from the starting rotation to the sixth man reserve position, in favour of forward Harrison Barnes. Since entering the NBA, Iguodala had played in 806 games as a starter without entering a game as a reserve, a league-high over that span. On March 18, 2015, he scored a then season-high 21 points on 9-of-12 shooting in a 114-95 win over the Atlanta Hawks. The Warriors advanced to the 2015 NBA Finals to face Cleveland, where he was the team’s best defender against Cavaliers star LeBron James. With Golden State down 2–1 in the series, Iguodala made his first start of the season, replacing centre Andrew Bogut in Game 4. Iguodala scored a season-high 22 points on 8-of-15 shooting, which included four 3-pointers. The Warriors’ small lineup, which came to be known as the Death Lineup, helped turn the series around. The Warriors defeated the Cavaliers in six games, and Iguodala was named the Finals MVP, becoming the first player to win the award without starting a game during the regular season. He was also the first MVP to not have started every game in the Finals. He finished the series averaging 16.3 points, 4 assists, and 5.8 rebounds. When Iguodala was in the game, James made only 38.1% of his shots, compared to 44% without Iguodala.

2015–16 season

On November 11, 2015, Iguodala scored a season-high 20 points against the Memphis Grizzlies to help the Warriors begin the season 9–0. The Warriors’ NBA-record start ended after 24 wins when they lost to the Milwaukee Bucks 108–95 on December 12. An ankle injury suffered in early March forced Igoudala to miss 13 straight games. The Warriors finished the regular season as the first seed in the Western Conference with a 73–9 record, the best overall record in NBA history, surpassing the 1995–96 Chicago Bulls’ mark of 72–10, while Iguodala finished as runner-up for the 2015–16 NBA Sixth Man of the Year Award. In the first round of the playoffs, the Warriors faced the eighth-seeded Houston Rockets, and in a Game 4 win on April 24, Iguodala scored a season-high 22 points. The Warriors went on to defeat the Rockets in five games. In the second round, Iguodala helped the Warriors defeat the Portland Trail Blazers in five games to qualify for the Western Conference Finals. In their conference finals match-up with the Oklahoma City Thunder, Iguodala helped the Warriors fightback from a 3–1 deficit in the series to win clinch a 4–3 victory. In-Game 6 of the series, Iguodala’s defence on Kevin Durant and Russell Westbrook was key to the Warriors forcing Game 7. In Game 7, Iguodala started in place of Harrison Barnes and again marked Kevin Durant. With a Game 7 victory, the Warriors moved on to the NBA Finals for the second straight year. The Warriors would again play the Cleveland Cavaliers for the championship. Despite the Warriors going up 3–1 in the series following a Game 4 win, they went on to lose the series in seven games to become the first team in NBA history to lose the championship series after being up 3–1.

2016–17 season: Second NBA Championship

On November 28, 2016, Iguodala had a season-best game with 12 points, five rebounds and five assists in a 105–100 win over the Atlanta Hawks, helping the Warriors start the season 16–2 while recording their 12th straight victory—their equal third-longest streak in franchise history. On January 16, 2017, he came off the bench to make all five of his field-goal attempts for a season-high 14 points in a 126–91 win over the Cleveland Cavaliers. In February 2017, long-time agent Rob Pelinka was appointed as the new general manager for the Los Angeles Lakers; Iguodala chose to remain with the Landmark Sports Agency, and co-founder Brandon Rosenthal took over as Iguodala’s agent. On March 6, 2017, he set a new season-high with 24 points in a 119–111 win over the Atlanta Hawks. On March 13, 2017, he was fined $10,000 by the NBA for using racially intemperate language in an interview following the Warriors’ loss to the Minnesota Timberwolves on March 10. The Warriors finished the season as the first seed in the West with a 67–15 record. Following a 129–115 victory in Game 4 of the Western Conference Finals over the Spurs, the Warriors reached their third straight NBA Finals series while becoming the first team in league history to start the playoffs 12–0. Iguodala was a key bench player during the 2017 NBA Finals, often guarding LeBron James and scored 20 points in Game 5, helping the Warriors win the championship by defeating the Cavaliers in five games.

2017–18 season: Third NBA Championship

Iguodala entered the 2017 off-season as a free agent and held meetings with numerous competing teams, including the Los Angeles Lakers, San Antonio Spurs, Sacramento Kings, and Houston Rockets. However, on July 25, 2017, Iguodala re-signed with the Warriors on a three-year, $48 million contract. On December 11, 2017, against the Portland Trail Blazers, Iguodala played his 1,000th regular-season game, becoming one of 126 players in NBA history to accomplish the feat. Iguodala played in Game 3 of the 2018 NBA Finals after missing the final four games of the Western Conference Finals and the first two games of the NBA Finals with a left lateral leg contusion. The Warriors went on to win their third championship in four years with a sweep of the Cavaliers.

2018–19 season

Iguodala averaged a career-low 5.7 points, 3.7 rebounds and 3.2 assists in the regular season. During the playoffs, he boosted his averages to 9.8 points, 4.3 rebounds and 4.0 assists, while also starting a majority of the games. In a sign of respect towards their opponent and with increased urgency, Kerr opened the conference semifinals against Houston by moving Iguodala from the bench and starting their Hamptons Five lineup for the first time in the season. After starting nine consecutive games, he missed the deciding Game 4 in the conference finals against Portland with a sore left calf injury from Game 3. The Warriors returned to the NBA Finals for the fifth straight season but lost in six games to the Toronto Raptors. In a 114–110 series-ending loss in Game 6, Iguodala had 22 points for his best scoring output of the postseason. However, Thompson left the game after tearing the anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) in his left knee, and Durant was already sidelined after rupturing his right Achilles tendon in Game 5.

Memphis Grizzlies (2019–present)

On July 7, 2019, Golden State traded Iguodala along with a protected first-round draft pick to the Memphis Grizzlies for Julian Washburn. The Warriors received a traded player exception in the deal. Golden State was eyeing a replacement for Thompson while he recovered from his injury, and the trade freed salary cap space for them to acquire All-Star guard D’Angelo Russell in a sign-and-trade package with the Brooklyn Nets for Durant, who had announced earlier that he planned to sign with the Nets. Afterwards, the Warriors stated that they planned to eventually retire Iguodala’s No. 9 jersey.

National team career

Iguodala was a member of the United States national team in the 2010 FIBA World Championship, winning the gold medal. In the FIBA World Championships Iguodala displayed his athleticism with an array of fastbreak dunks.

Iguodala was also selected for the 2012 London Olympics team, largely due to his exceptional defensive ability. He helped Team USA win the gold medal against Spain in a 107–100 victory. Coach Mike Krzyzewski called Iguodala one of the team’s best players and compared his game to that of Scottie Pippen.

He also won a bronze medal with the U.S. at the FIBA Americas Under-18 Championship in 2002.

Personal life

In August 2015, Iguodala married his childhood sweetheart, Christina Gutierrez, at One&Only Palmilla in Los Cabos, Mexico. Iguodala has a daughter, London, and a son, Andre Jr.

Iguodala is a Christian. He has said, “Faith is something I heavily lean on to give me that balance. I make sure I stay in chapel and have a good relationship with our chaplain. It keeps me focused … When people see us on the court, we want them to see God’s work. We want to be a good representation of what we believe in …When you go out there, you’re not just representing your country or the NBA, you’re representing your beliefs. You want to play hard for someone who died for you”.

The Sporting News named Iguodala one of “the good guys of 2006” for establishing the Andre Iguodala Disaster Relief Fund that raised money for tornado victims in his hometown of Springfield, Illinois. He later established the Andre Iguodala Youth Foundation, whose stated mission is to use sports as a means to help youths. The organization has hosted basketball camps and the annual “Thanksgiving with Dre”, which has distributed food baskets to families in need.

Alongside teammate Stephen Curry, Iguodala is known to be an avid golfer. Iguodala enjoys playing video games, particularly the NBA 2K series. He played in a tournament put together at the NBA 2K10 launch party in New York City against other NBA players Nate Robinson, Brook Lopez and Rajon Rondo, and rapper Wale.

In March 2015, Twice, an online secondhand apparel outlet named Iguodala its Menswear Style Director.

Business interests

Iguodala is a tech-investor and a leading advocate for athletes in the NBA to invest in the technology industry. His partnership with entrepreneurs in San Francisco’s Silicon Valley has led to an annual event tagged Players Technology Summit. The inaugural edition of the event began in 2017 where Iguodala and teammate Stephen Curry played hosts. The second edition saw other athletes from the NBA like Kevin Durant and Jaylen Brown make debuts. The Players Technology Summit, sponsored by Bloomberg, was established as a platform to set a discourse and help shape conversations for athletes’ financial future through opportunities in the technology industry.

Together with partner Rudy Cline-Thomas, Iguodala has been able to invest in companies like Facebook, Twitter, and Tesla. The two have also invested in at least 25 different startups in the technology industry.

Books

On June 25, 2019, Iguodala released The Sixth Man: A Memoir.

Career statistics

NBA

Regular season

Playoffs

College