Last Year's Curry, Wiggins Duo Was Dynamic

We’re all aware of Steph Curry’s insane 2020-2021 NBA season. Steph won the scoring title and took the Warriors to one win away from the playoffs, despite missing Klay Thompson for the whole season and not having James Wiseman and Kelly Oubre Jr. down the stretch.

Many of us (and maybe rightly so) attribute the Warriors’ success last year solely to Steph Curry, but did you know that the highest-scoring duo in the whole NBA last year belonged to the Warriors? No, the highest-scoring duo wasn’t Beal and Westbrook, Tatum and Brown, or even Giannis and Khris Middleton—it was Steph Curry and Andrew Wiggins. Together, Curry and Wiggins combined for a total of 3,335 points, edging the Beal, Wesbrook duo by 12 points.

If you watched the Warriors play last year, you’re well aware of how vital Andrew Wiggins was to that team. He averaged 18.6 points per game, shot 38% from three-point range, 47% from the field, and solidified himself as one of the league’s best defenders. He was the model of consistency as he only missed one game all year, and he really helped keep the ship afloat when Curry missed several games due to his bruised tailbone. Wiggins averaged 22.4 points, 5.9 rebounds and 2.9 assists in 8 games without Steph, while also shooting 50% from the field and from three-point range in those games!

While Steph and Wiggins being the NBA’s highest scoring duo is one of the more surprising stats from last season, it’s extremely encouraging for the future of the franchise—especially as Klay Thompson is eased into gameplay this year. With Steph and Wiggins playing alongside proven scoring threats in Jordan Poole, James Wiseman, Otto Porter Jr. and Nemanja Bjelica (not to mention the addition of rookies Moses Moody and Jonathan Kuminga, who looked excellent in summer league play), the Warriors’ offense looks to be a lot more lethal on paper next season as opposed to last season, and a lot of that is due to Wiggins’ improved offensive game.

Prior to last season, the best Wiggins ever shot from three-point range was 35.6%, and that happened a long time ago—in the 2016-2017 season. Since then, Wiggins hovered around shooting 33% from three until he jumped five percentage points with Golden State this past season. Additionally, Wiggins’ efficiency numbers were up pretty much across the board, as he averaged his fewest number of turnovers per game in five years (1.8) and the highest field-goal percentage of his career (47.7%).

Assuming Wiggins can keep those numbers about even this year or even improve them further, it will only benefit Steph Curry. Despite Wiggins’ efficient scoring numbers, Curry had barely any room to work on the floor last year. In fact, according to BBall Index, Steph Curry’s floor spacing last year ranked at 5%, which was the lowest amount of spacing among NBA stars in non-garbage time minutes. Yes, Steph Curry averaged 32 points per game, which led the league in scoring, but he had to work incredibly hard for those buckets due to the fact that he and Wiggins were truly the only two reliable scoring threats on the team. Since the Warriors’ front office finally added some consistent shooters to the team this offseason, in addition to Klay Thompson, Poole and hopefully Andrew Wiggins, Steph will likely have much more space to cook and, frankly, won’t have to almost kill himself to keep the Warriors in games this season.

All in all, next season looks bright for the Warriors. The Steph and Wiggins duo might not be leading the league in scoring again this season, but the chemistry they established together last season will be an extremely important part of staying afloat in this year’s playoff race and giving Klay Thompson adequate time to fully heal and get right for the Dubs’ stretch run.