SAN FRANCISCO — Andrew Wiggins’ offseason hasn’t gone according to plan, and his schedule will continue to be disrupted through the weekend.
Wiggins, who was under the weather during the Warriors’ training camp week in Hawaii, will miss the team’s third preseason game on Friday night in Chase Center. He’s also doubtful to play on Sunday, head coach Steve Kerr said, leaving only two preseason contests for Wiggins to potentially suit up for.
“It’s unfortunate because he’s going to be a big part of everything,” Kerr said, echoing his previous statements on the veteran wing.
Wiggins returned to practice in full on Tuesday, sat out Wednesday night’s win in Sacramento, then participated in Golden State’s Thursday morning light session.
After Tuesday’s session, Wiggins spoke with reporters for the first time since media day, saying he feels much better. It’s unclear exactly what illness the small forward succumbed to, but he was coughing during his press conference.
“Still got some time before the regular season starts,” Wiggins said. “I’m back at practice now, going through everything. We’ve got a great coaching staff who are great teachers. Trying to learn, trying to figure stuff out. I was watching from the sidelines a lot in Hawaii, so it wasn’t like I was left behind or anything like that.”
But an illness knocking Wiggins out for four of the team’s six preseason games surely hurts Wiggins’ ability to reach Golden State’s expectations for him right away. They plan for him to guard the opposing team’s best player, take on a more featured role as a scorer and, presumably, start.
But with Wiggins unavailable, Kerr hasn’t been able to test out how he and Jonathan Kuminga share the court — a critical combination.
Before the training camp illness, Wiggins wasn’t able to play for Team Canada in the Olympics because of a minor ankle injury. And according to one report, the Warriors actively shopped Wiggins on the trade market as they brought in Kyle Anderson and Buddy Hield — two players who ostensibly play his position. Now he has lost chances to establish a rhythm in exhibition games and full-court scrimmages, which he has yet to participate in.
The key for Wiggins will be if Wiggins can shoot the ball well enough from the outside to play alongside Kuminga. The Warriors want to play with a center next to Draymond Green, so Wiggins would have to space the floor in order to make the super-sized lineup of Wiggins, Kuminga, Green, Steph Curry and Trayce Jackson-Davis work. Ditto for if they started Green at the five in a smaller combination.
Last season, small-ball lineups featuring Green at center and both Wiggins and Kuminga on the floor were effective (two variations outscored opponents by 18.5 and 14.6 points per 100 possessions, respectively). But Kerr was hesitant to pair the two wings with both Green and a traditional center.
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“One thing we haven’t been able to do (in preseason), obviously, is play Wiggs and JK together at the two and the three,” Kerr said. “Which we struggled with last year. But I’d still like to if we can be better with those two guys playing together, and that’s what’s been limited is our ability to do that.”
Kerr reiterated that Wiggins came into camp in “great shape,” so his recovery should be quicker than normal. But it sure doesn’t feel like a quick recovery, and lost time in the preseason has the potential to spill over into the regular season.
Notable
— Like the rest of his team, Kyle Anderson has been impressed with De’Anthony Melton through two preseason games and behind the scenes. Anderson is familiar with Melton, having played with him in Memphis for years.
“He can shoot the ball really well, he’s just a good overall player,” Anderson said. “He guards, he does everything. Can rebound really well, has long arms, athletic, gets deflections, knocks down shots, he can play the point for you. He just does a lot of everything. He’s a complete basketball player, that’s what I’ve always liked his game.”
So, kind of like Derrick White — another former Anderson teammate who has become the gold-standard superstar role player?
“Oh, I never really thought of that. But yeah, that’s a really good point, actually. Looking at it, D-White is a guy who does anything you ask him to do. D-White’s sneaky athletic, he can shoot the ball — that’s the same thing as Melton, so that’s a very good comparison.”
— The Warriors showed Terry Stotts’ impact in one play on Wednesday night when they opened the fourth quarter with a set play.
The play was designed to free Buddy Hield in the corner with a pin-down screen, using a flare on the opposite end of the court as eye candy. But the Kings sniffed it out and Hield wasn’t open in the corner, so Golden State shifted to its patented split-action with Anderson in the post. The possession ended with a Brandin Podziesmki layup.
“Yeah, so that was a Terry Stotts action. The Portland stuff that he ran with (Damian Lillard and CJ McCollum),” Kerr said. “Part of the idea of bringing Terry here was that his offense resembles ours, but had more structure. Based on personnel. What was interesting about that play was it was all the old Portland stuff and we didn’t get anything, and then it came back to the split game that we’ve been running forever. That’s what I like about some of the stuff we’re trying to add, is it seems to blend well.”
Golden State wants to introduce more structure to its offense, which is easier to do out of a break in the action. But that play encapsulates what the Warriors are striving for in the half court.