The Golden State Warriors wrapped up their fourth NBA championship in eight years a few weeks ago when they defeated the Boston Celtics in six games. It was an impressive performance as Golden State looks to start up another dynastic run with their core of Stephen Curry, Klay Thompson and Draymond Green.

While those three remain constant in the winning, the pieces around them are constantly changing. This past season, one of the biggest contributors was Andrew Wiggins.

Wiggins was acquired from the Minnesota Timberwolves in exchange for D’Angelo Russell ahead of the deadline in 2020. Many people had already labeled him as a bust, but Wiggins has really come into his own during his time with the Warriors.

The two-way potential that led to him being the No. 1 overall pick in the 2014 NBA Draft has begun to be realized. He emerged as the Warriors’ most consistent player during their run to the Larry O’Brien trophy with elite defense and excellent complementary offense.

Set to be a free agent in 2023, the Warriors have some tough decisions to make in the coming months. While they would love to pay everyone, that just isn’t a feasible option. Since he was acquired Wiggins has been discussed as a trade piece.

However, with how well he played, that has changed. As one NBA scout said to NBA Analysis Network, Wiggins may be too important to let walk.

“One of the important parts of the Warriors’ run was being able to trust Wiggins to guard the top creator. It was pretty frequent that Draymond was freed up to guard the secondary threat like Jalen Brunson and Jaylen Brown. How many teams will have three threats that can attack at a high level? Being able to contain the top two guys sets the tone.”

As the adage goes, defense wins championships and the Warriors possessed one of the best ones in the NBA. Another year removed from his injuries, Thompson should also start to regain his form, as he was an elite 3-and-D performer as well.

LATEST NBA NEWS & TRADE RUMORS: Golden State Warriors & Andrew Wiggins Updates

Having three players of that caliber would certainly make life easy for Steve Kerr. He deserves a lot of credit as well for the game plan that he deployed. Getting the most out of Wiggins, who had to change his approach drastically from how he played with the Timberwolves, was key to the team finding this success.

“A big difference from Wiggins’ role with the Warriors compared to when he was on the Timberwolves is how he’s getting his touches. Steph draws multiple defenders so early, guys like Wiggins can be aggressive with 45-cuts and crashing the boards. Those add up. … He’s doing more attacking off the catch against an out-of-rotation defense instead of being the player expected to initiate that chain of events. His mid-range jumper has been a real weapon in those situations. Credit to him, some didn’t think he’d adapt.”

There was never any doubt when it came to Wiggins about his skill, but people were unsure how dedicated he was to the game of basketball. He quieted those doubters with his performance during the postseason and has set himself up for another monster payday next summer.

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