'Aggressive' Andrew Wiggins says Warriors welcome – NBC Sports Bay Area and California

SALT LAKE CITY — The Warriors' search for a second-leading scorer behind Steph Curry has been a focus throughout the offseason, especially after they couldn't pair him with an established star like Paul George or Lauri Markkanen. Coach Steve Kerr quickly pointed to Andrew Wiggins, explaining that the 2022 NBA All-Star is scoring 20 points every night in the prime of his career at 29 years old.

And in the Warriors' season opener, Wiggins appeared ready to take on that role, scoring an efficient 20 points on 8 of 15 shooting and 4 of 7 from 3-point range. But in the Warriors' second game of the regular season, Wiggins couldn't buy a basket.

He shot four times in the first quarter and scored just once. Wiggins then had three more shot attempts in the second quarter and missed all three. His scoring rate in the first half was just two points on 1 of 7 shots. However, when Wiggins is at his best, his game is about much more than just scoring.

Another factor from the 2022 All-Star campaign that led to a Warriors championship was on display Friday night in Golden State's 127-86 road win over the Utah Jazz: rebounding.

In the first half alone, Wiggins had ten rebounds, five on offense and five on defense, which is the most he has scored in a half in his career.

“You can feel it,” Draymond Green told NBC Sports Bay Area. “You can tell straight away when Wiggs is aggressive. And when he isn't, we all depend on him to understand that we need him to be aggressive. He made his presence felt from the goal, which was huge for us because they came hard at the start of the game.”

Kerr's new starting lineup of Curry, Wiggins, Jonathan Kuminga, Green and Trayce Jackson-Davis struggled early for the second straight game. They also outperformed the Jazz. When Kerr called his first timeout, the Warriors were down 15-6 at 6:27 of the first quarter and the Jazz (12) already had seven more rebounds than the Warriors (five). Just over a minute later, Wiggins was substituted and he didn't return until there were seven minutes left in the second quarter.

In those seven minutes, Wiggins was a beast on the boards. Despite going scoreless, Wiggins was a plus-6, thanks in large part to his grabbing eight rebounds in those seven minutes.

“I liked Wiggs' first half because he attacked but nothing went,” Kerr said. “He didn’t make any shots, but he kept playing hard. And again, that tone that I liked the most from the first two games and the preseason is how hard our guys play from the first minute to the last minute, and Wiggs is a big part of that.”

The game rewards heart and effort. Wiggins' first shot attempt of the second half was cash as Curry busted his tail on defense, leading to Wiggins hitting a three-pointer from the left wing.

Steph's lockdown defense leads to an easy Wiggs Three 😤 pic.twitter.com/JwAhYjJo6u

– Warriors on NBCS (@NBCSWarriors) October 26, 2024

He missed his next attempt, but that didn't stop him from doing the dirty work. After another defensive rebound from Wiggins, basketball in its purest form, with the ball whizzing down the court and barely dribbled, turned into three more points for Wiggins.

Buddy with the no-look assist for Wiggs 😲 pic.twitter.com/D3dQ6awEtz

– Warriors on NBCS (@NBCSWarriors) October 26, 2024

“He got loose balls, he was active and I think that carried over into the second half where he was able to make a few throws and get to the rim,” Kevon Looney told NBC Sports Bay Area. “We just want him to be aggressive in all aspects of the game and for him to be able to influence the game beyond just scoring.”

The Jazz's starting lineup features two 7-footers in Markkanen and Walker Kessler. The Warriors don't have a single player taller than 6-9. Powered by Wiggins' ball nose, the Warriors outscored the Jazz 60-45.

Wiggins' 13 rebounds were not only a game-high for both teams, but also his new career high for the regular season, surpassing his previous best of 11. The last time Wiggins rebounded at such a clip was in the 2022 Finals In the Six game series, he averaged 8.8 rebounds.

After the Warriors lost two games to one, Wiggins posted a 17-point, 16-rebound performance in Game 4 against the Boston Celtics, tying the series at two games apiece. Curry was the hero of Game 5, although Wiggins wasn't far behind. To give the Warriors a series lead, Wiggins not only scored 26 points, but also 13 rebounds.

Until Friday night in Utah, he hadn't reached those rebound numbers in either of his two seasons.

“This is huge. “This is huge for this group,” Green said. “Sometimes we are a little challenged at altitude, so knowing that our wings are bouncing like that is a clear sign of his aggression. This team has always needed him to be aggressive, but I think that's even more the case now.

“So 13 rebounds, that’s a sign that he brings a lot of energy to the floor, which is huge.”

There is no more telling sign of where Wiggins is mentally on the court than how he attacks the rim and the glass. The way he did both against the Jazz says it all, and the Warriors will continue to push the reserved, soft-spoken Wiggins to never lower the volume to make his presence heard and felt in every way.

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