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Andre Iguodala: The Most Impactful Player In The NBA?

By Michael Dunlap

Mar 2, 2014; Toronto, Ontario, CAN; Golden State Warriors forward Andre Iguodala (9) dribbles up the court against the Toronto Raptors at Air Canada Centre. The Raptors beat the Warriors 104-98. Mandatory Credit: Tom Szczerbowski-USA TODAY Sports
Mar 2, 2014; Toronto, Ontario, CAN; Golden State Warriors forward Andre Iguodala (9) dribbles up the court against the Toronto Raptors at Air Canada Centre. The Raptors beat the Warriors 104-98. Mandatory Credit: Tom Szczerbowski-USA TODAY Sports /
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When Andre Iguodala was traded to the Golden State Warriors back on July 10, 2013, we knew he would have an immediate impact on their defense. What we didn’t know is just how much the 6-foot-6 swingman from Springfield, Illinois would affect both ends of the court. As it turns out, Iggy may be the most impactful player in the NBA.

During the 2013-14 season, the Warriors saw a massive transformation in their defense. They went from being the No. 14 defense in the NBA to being the No. 4 team in basketball in terms of defensive rating (105.5  to 102.6). They allowed the 10th-fewest points (99.5), in large part because of their pace (No. 6 in the NBA). What changed from that 2012-13 roster to last season? Aside from Andrew Bogut playing almost 1,000 more minutes, the only significant change was the arrival of Iguodala.

May 3, 2014; Los Angeles, CA, USA; Golden State Warriors forward Andre Iguodala (9) dunks the ball against the Los Angeles Clippers in game seven of the first round of the 2014 NBA Playoffs at Staples Center. Mandatory Credit: Kirby Lee-USA TODAY Sports
May 3, 2014; Los Angeles, CA, USA; Golden State Warriors forward Andre Iguodala (9) dunks the ball against the Los Angeles Clippers in game seven of the first round of the 2014 NBA Playoffs at Staples Center. Mandatory Credit: Kirby Lee-USA TODAY Sports /

According to basketball-reference.com, the 2013-14 regular season marked the first time in Iguodala’s career that he had a double-digit affect while he was on the court (per 100 possessions). In fact, over the previous five seasons, he’s gone from a minus-4.7 in 2009-10 with the Philadelphia 76ers to a remarkable plus-13.8 last season with the Warriors.

If that wasn’t impressive enough, Iguodala’s regular season net on/off court rating was a remarkable plus-17.7, which according to 82games.com, was the best in the league for anyone who appeared in at least 40 percent of their team’s minutes. In quite the damning stat for the Warriors bench, the next two highest were Stephen Curry (plus-17.4) and Klay Thompson (plus-14.9).

Iguodala’s always been lauded for his defense, although last season was the first time he was named to the NBA’s All-Defensive First Team (with one second team in 2010-11).

What’s interesting about these stats is that Iggy actually had one of the least prolific offensive seasons of his career. His averages of 9.3 points, 4.7 rebounds, 4.2 assists and 1.5 steals rank at or near the bottom of any years of his career and are well under his averages of 14.6 points, 5.7 rebounds, 4.9 assists and 1.7 steals.

His 13.7 efficiency rating leaves a lot to be desired, but we have to look at more of the picture here to determine if Iguodala is the most impactful player in the NBA.

To use a car analogy, the body and the engine are the two things that are going to get the most attention. They’re the sexy parts of the car, if you will. Thompson and Curry are those parts of the Warriors. When you watch or when you check out the basic stats, they’re the ones that stick out.

Iguodala is like the oil. Replace him with a lesser quality oil, and you still have a car that will run — but it’s likely to be less efficient than it once was. With the proper high-performance oil, your car will run at peak performance. Put in the cheap stuff and you’re going to get a lot less than that.

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    • One major reason that Iguodala didn’t put up monster offensive numbers is because he simply didn’t have to. He played within the offense and took what came to him. His 13.3 percent usage rate was the lowest he’s had since his rookie season and was a full 5.5 percent less than his previous year in Denver.

    Instead of pressing and having to carry his team offensively (as he had to in Philadelphia), he took a lot more quality shots. The stats showed that the strategy worked — including his posting a career-best .548 effective field goal percentage and the highest true shooting percentage (.570) he’s had in eight seasons.

    Is Iguodala the best player in the NBA? Not by a long shot. Is he the most important player in the league — the most impactful — to the point that his team is worse off without him than any other player in the NBA? The numbers say he is. I know many will argue for LeBron James or Kevin Durant — who do you think is the most impactful player in the NBA?

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