Andre Iguodala has seen a lot in his NBA days. Prior to joining the Golden State Warriors in 2013 (it’s hard to believe this is already his sixth season in the Bay Area), Iguodala played eight seasons for the Philadelphia 76ers, and one for the Denver Nuggets.
So it goes without saying that he knows how the Warriors franchise compares to other teams in the league, and not just in terms of winning championships, which he’s done three times since coming to Golden State.
On a recent episode of the “Follow Your Different” podcast by Christopher Lochhead, Iguodala discussed how the Warriors stand out from the pack in terms of how they treat their players.
“Teams have budgets, and some teams are really cheap,” Iguodala said, as transcribed by Drew Shiller of NBC Sports Bay Area. “This was [the Sixers travel planner’s] idea: We stay in good hotels in good cities and bad hotels in the bad cities, because what difference does it make if you’re in a bad city? Good point, so that’s how we did it. But we had to budget all that out. But with the Warriors, there’s no such thing. Everything -- whatever is the best we can find. And then we actually have food set up everywhere we go with the Warriors. When we get in somewhere, there’s a restaurant reserved for us. Order whatever you want, it’s all set up”
Iguodala added that the veterans help the younger players get perspective on life outside of the Warriors: “We always tell the young guys, our rookies -- ‘Listen, this isn’t the real NBA. The Warriors -- this isn’t real. This is kind of like a fantasy land.”
“Kind of like a fantasy land” . . . I think that would make a damn good team motto if they ever want to retire “Strength in numbers.”