Wiggins perfectly plays Steph’s gritty sidekick in Warriors’ win

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Wiggins perfectly plays Steph’s gritty sidekick in Warriors’ win originally appeared on NBC Sports Bay Area

Steph Curry turned to Minnesota Timberwolves fans sitting courtside before the ball was even halfway in the air. When he turned to look back at the ball, it had just landed home, swishing through the net to give the Warriors a three-point lead with 47 seconds remaining. The celebration was on.

Curry had won his superstar battle against Anthony Edwards, outscoring his Team USA teammate who’s more than 13 years younger than him, 31-28. The final few possessions showed why Andrew Wiggins was the perfect counterpart to Curry in the Warriors’ 116-115 win over the Timberwolves on Wednesday night at Target Center.

With the Warriors leading by one point, 111-110, Wiggins went to screen Jaden McDaniels on an out-of-bounds play to free up Curry on their next offensive possession. McDaniels is 6-foot-9 and doesn’t have a passive bone in his body when he’s playing defense. McDaniels tried to play through Wiggins, but he held his own and McDaniels was whistled for a foul that sent Wiggins to the free throw line.

There, Wiggins made his ninth and 10th free throws of the night to give the Warriors a three-point lead. He then immediately grabbed a big-time rebound off an Edwards missed 3-point attempt while being hacked by multiple Wolves. His biggest rebound of the game, however, came nine seconds later.

Gary Payton II could have given Golden State a three-point advantage for the final 10 seconds. But as his free throw hit the front of the rim, the back of the rim and the left side of the rim before bouncing out and off multiple hands, Wiggins darted in from beyond the arc, secured the rebound, dribbled down the clock and found Curry, who made two free throws to seal the deal.

“I thought Wiggs was huge,” Steve Kerr told reporters after the win. “When Steph was out, he really took over the offense. Got to the foul line, kept our lead in that third quarter.”

The Warriors didn’t have Wiggins (personal reason) for the first two games of their four-game road trip, to which they won one and lost one. Wiggins then…

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Source link : https://sports.yahoo.com/wiggins-perfectly-plays-stephs-gritty-233052320.html

Author : NBC Sports BayArea

Publish date : 2025-01-15 23:30:00

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