Drafted 18 years ago, Andre Igudoala has seen it all throughout his illustrious career.
He's played with superstars like Allen Iverson, Stephen Curry and Jimmy Butler, been traded multiple times, made an All-Star team, won championships and even won an NBA Finals award. But while his elite resume speaks for itself, Iguodala is now 38 years old and at the tail end of his career.
Iguodala is no longer a dynamic offensive slasher. He's also no longer one of the top perimeter defenders in the game. And Iguodala has been on the injury list for most of the season.
During the regular season, Iguodala only played in 31 games. In the playoffs, he played sparingly in three of Golden State's five games in the first round. And for the Finals, Iguodala's status remains uncertain as he's been sidelined for several weeks with a neck injury.
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But even if Iguodala has been injured and can't contribute on the court for the Warriors, he remains a valuable member of the team for his veteran leadership and mentorship.
“We had a great mentoring system in place this year with all these young guys playing with our vets who had seen it all,” Kerr said on Sunday. “Andre, in particular, was just incredible this year and continues to be so with his counseling and advice.
“He does it in a way only Andre can, with humor and sarcasm and cryptic messaging.”
For Iguodala, this is exactly the type of role he envisioned for himself when he signed a one-year deal with the Warriors last offseason. It didn't matter that he likely wasn't going to play much. Iguodala wanted to return to the Warriors and impart the wisdom he picked up from two seasons with the Miami Heat.
In Miami, Iguodala got indoctrinated by the team's culture of hard work. It gave him a different perspective and appreciation for the game.
“The way that they develop their younger players in making sure they have the proper approach to how they’re doing their job is second to none and I really appreciated that,” Iguodala told Jonathan Abrams of the New York Times in August, “because there’s a fine line between your superstar and your eighth, ninth guy coming off the bench and all of our guys were always ready.”
With the Warriors this season, Iguodala has made it a point to help the team's young core of Jordan Poole, Jonathan Kuminga and Moses Moody. You can see him on the sideline during games giving them advice and encouragement.
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“Extremely meticulous,” Poole said about Iguodala on Sunday. “He likes to point out the details and small things. He has a lot of knowledge and he’s really willing to share, which is really cool to be a part of. He’s also extremely real. He’ll keep it a rack, he won’t sugarcoat anything. He will tell you exactly what it is...Being able to have him in our corner as a vet is huge.”
Iguodala's graceful evolution to a player-coach-like role has been quite valuable to Golden State's success this season. His contributions won't show up in any box score though. Instead, they are engrained in the team's culture.
“He has a great feel of knowing when to talk to people, knowing when to encourage or when to yell at people," Kevon Looney said on Sunday. "He’s just a great leader for everybody."