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Getty Andrew Wiggins and Joel Embiid share a joke during practice before the All-Star Game.
In the midst of the best season of his career, Golden State Warriors star Andrew Wiggins just received another honor: the title of “Splash Brother.”
While preparing for the first All-Star Game of his career, Wiggins interacted with some of the best players in the league and received some praise for his performance this year. One of the biggest came from Philadelphia 76ers star and MVP candidate Joel Embiid, who noticed the change in Wiggins since he moved to Golden State.
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Wiggins joins the Splash brothers
In a clip shared by the NBA TV Twitter account, Wiggins and Embiid were seen talking during All-Star practice on Saturday morning, with Embiid noting a significant jump in the game for the Warriors’ wing.
“You went to Golden State and became a Splash Brother too,” Embiid joked. “You’re only detecting three.”
Embiid was referring to the nickname given to Steph Curry and Klay Thompson, who have been two of the best scorers in the league and are considered two of the best pure shooters in NBA history.
Wiggins’ former Minnesota Timberwolves teammate, Karl-Anthony Towns, also had some comments about his game. The video shows Towns telling Atlanta Hawks star Trae Young that something has changed for Wiggins since he came to Golden State.
“I’m telling you, they have that secret, bro,” Towns said. “He Goes 40 percent of three.”
Wiggins is having the best shooting season of his eight-year career, shooting 41.4 percent from 3-point range, well above his career average of 35.1 percent. Wiggins is shooting 48.1 percent from the field overall, also a career best for him.
Wiggins brings a full game
While his shooting efficiency may be getting more attention, Wiggins has also been one of the Warriors’ best wing defenders, helping the team become one of the best defenses in the league. Wiggins said he has been able to learn a lot from watching teammate Draymond Green, a six-time All-Defensive Team selection who had been in the running for Defensive Player of the Year this season before missing the last 20 games with injury. in the back.
“Just learning, just watching. You know, Draymond is a defensive specialist, one of a kind to him, everywhere,” Wiggins said, via The Sporting News.
“Even if I’m on the bench and he’s in the game, I just watch his movement, I watch what he does, how he anticipates things and I just sort of rack his brain, like ‘what did you see there? How did you get there?’
“Draymond is great, he’s the anchor of our defense.”
After two seasons that ended outside the playoffs, Wiggins helped spark a renaissance in Golden State. The team sits second in the Western Conference at 42-17, behind only the Phoenix Suns, and has been picked to win the Western Conference by many pundits. The team had three All-Star selections this season, the most in the league, with Green and Steph Curry joining Wiggins. Although Green will not be able to compete in the game, the Warriors said he will return sometime after the All-Star break.
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