Andre Iguodala is no longer a member of the Warriors, and it sure sounds like he's going to miss playing with Draymond Green.
Iguodala authored his first book "The Sixth Man: A Memoir" this summer, and in an except making the rounds on social media on Monday, he lays out the reasons Green has become a successful NBA player and why he is generally adored by his teammates, calling him "the heart and soul" of the Warriors' underdog identity.
"All of us on the team came, of course, from different backgrounds -- this is the case with all players," Iguodala wrote. "Some guys like Steph and Klay come from good homes, two parents, professional-athlete parents, and the game is with them from birth. You have other guys who come from basically nothing, but everyone around them recognizes that they can be the savior if they can just make it out of there. So everyone sacrifices for them, protects them, travels with them.
"But you have those kids like Draymond who were underdogs the entire time," Iguodala continued. "Never the upper-middle-class kid with the basketball family, never the golden child or hood savior everyone rallied around to lift up. He had to put it all together on his own. That's why he has that bravado about himself. Because he wasn't supposed to be here at all."
Warriors coach Steve Kerr has frequently called Iguodala one of the smartest players he's ever been around, and Iguodala views Green in the same light.
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"He is quite possibly the smartest, most focused basketball player I've ever seen," Iguodala described Green." He's simply on another level. Almost a savant. He can remember plays from four years ago in their entirety, and he'll run you through the entire thirty-second sequence moment by moment. He'll remember his team's plays and he'll remember other teams' plays. He can call out their plays in the middle of games just based on the slightest indications.
"It's like he has an entire film library stored in his head and he can call it up to us at any time."
really enjoying @andre's book, especially this part about @Money23Green pic.twitter.com/QbWPoaxnR1— julie (@juliephayer) July 28, 2019
According to Iguodala, Green's meticulous attention to detail isn't limited to time on the court.
"He always knows the background on every player, what their salary is, when their contract or free agency is coming up," Iguodala elaborated. "He pays attention to the college game, knows what players are coming out, where they're projected to go. He's one of those people who just enjoys everything about being in the NBA."
Sometimes Green's emotions get the best of him, which has inevitably affected his public reputation. But not only does Iguodala feel as though that reputation is unfair, he also explains why Green's antics don't rub his teammates the wrong way.
"Draymond's head is always in respecting the game of basketball, in knowing everything he needs to know and doing everything he needs to do in order to win. Does he stray off the path now and again? No doubt. But his intent is never to harm the team. It's to win. Plain and simple. People ask if we get frustrated, but for us it's like, 'Man, that's our brother!' Of course you get frustrated with your brother, temporarily. But the respect, the love for him you have, is permanent.
"We all get frustrated with each other the way all families get frustrated. ... But at the end of the day, this is our family. And we will stay with it, no matter what."
Blood is thicker than water. Iguodala and Green are no longer teammates, but those resulting sad tears won't wash away the family ties that will continue to bind them.
