Why Wiggins is key to Warriors’ continued ownership of Rockets originally appeared on NBC Sports Bay Area
HOUSTON – Shortly before Warriors coach Steve Kerr spoke to reporters after practice on the Houston Rockets’ home court, the injury report revealed that Moses Moody will be absent Wednesday night for the NBA Cup quarterfinals due to left patella tendinitis and Andrew Wiggins is questionable due to an impingement of the right ankle. .
The former was clearly familiar to Kerr, but the latter escaped him. For Kerr, Wiggins is a good choice against the Rockets barring any unforeseen setbacks.
“Andrew is ready to go,” Kerr said. “Had a full training today, he looked good.”
Wiggins missed the Warriors’ 114-106 win against the Minnesota Timberwolves on Sunday due to the same ankle problem, an issue that has bothered him for some time. Wiggins said the pain is most on the inside of his ankle, but he also has pain on the outside.
Overall, though, it’s not something he can’t play through.
“It’s OK,” Wiggins says. “It’s better than last time.”
Wiggins first had problems with his right ankle during the Warriors’ win over the Phoenix Suns on November 30 and played through it a few days later during their loss to the Denver Nuggets on December 3. Kerr admitted after the Warriors’ win against the Phoenix Suns. Rockets two days later, on December 5, that Wiggins probably shouldn’t have even played because of the extent to which his ankle was bothering him.
But the Warriors were already without Steph Curry and Draymond Green for the game, making Wiggins’ availability even more important. He was also a big reason why the Warriors were able to outlast the Rockets that night.
Jonathan Kuminga’s career-high 33 points was the story of the Warriors beating the Rockets for the second time this season last week, although Wiggins wasn’t far behind. Wiggins scored 23 points, second only to Kuminga, on extremely efficient 8-for-15 shooting and was 3-of-4 on 3-pointers. He also tallied seven rebounds, including four in the fourth quarter.
The first time the Warriors played the Rockets, they nearly blew a 31-point lead, requiring overtime for a six-point win. Wiggins scored 15 points in the win on just 3-of-9 shooting, scoring seven of his points at the free-throw line.
“They are very active defensively,” Wiggins said. “It is a young team, with a lot of guys who can get started. We’ve played them a few times, played pretty well. We haven’t played them with a full team yet this year, so it should be fun.”
His goals are only part of his importance to the Warriors. As Wiggins said, the Rockets have several players who can warm up quickly, including Jalen Green.
So far, Wiggins has given Green whiplash as he watches his shots clash, rarely getting into a groove and finding his stride offensively. With Wiggins as the main defender guarding him, Green has scored a total of 21 points on the Warriors in two games, with seven coming in a loss in their first matchup and 14 in their second.
The former No. 2 overall draft pick has averaged 10.5 points on 20.7 percent shooting (6-of-29) and 11.1 percent on 3-pointers (1-of-9) playing against the Warriors this season. Against all other teams, Green is averaging 20.2 points in the 22 other games he has played this season.
Specifically, Wiggins guarded Green for 11 1/2 minutes, allowing the young shooting guard to score seven points on 2-of-8 shooting. Wiggins has blocked his shot once and Green has made just one three-pointer on him.
Golden State has gotten the better of Houston in 15 straight games between these former bitter Western Conference rivals. A full roster with a healthy Wiggins chasing Green and the Rockets defensively, and being a reliable threat offensively, gives the Warriors a much better chance to make it 16 in a row.
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