After spending last summer waiting for Andre Iguodala to inform them whether he would return for one more season with the Warriors, and hoping he would, the team is taking a different approach this summer.
The Warriors do not expect Iguodala, 39, to be on the roster next season.
“But my sense is Andre’s probably got some other stuff going,” general manager Mike Dunleavy Jr. told NBC Sports Bay Area in a "Dubs Talk" interview that will be released next Tuesday.
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“But he has my number. The phone is always on.”
The door remains open for Iguodala, a key member of four championship teams. But unlike last summer, nobody is holding it open and urging a return.
Iguodala, who recently told me his status is “unemployed,” has yet to declare his intentions. Retirement is an option.
There is no question, however, that Iguodala was disappointed with last season. He missed the first 39 games last season preparing his body for competition and appeared in only eight games before fracturing his left wrist on March 13. After undergoing surgery, he missed the final month of the regular season and all 13 playoff games.
Golden State Warriors
There might be a part of the 19-year NBA veteran that hopes to go out on his feet, so to speak.
“We’ve communicated some this summer already,” Dunleavy said. “We’ll see. We’re not going to close the door on anything.
“But my guess, and my belief, is that he won’t be back.”
Iguodala was sort of an unofficial assistant coach last season, generally traveling with the team and providing tips for the younger players on the roster, specifically Jonathan Kuminga and Moses Moody, both of whom will return. He never was able to establish any rhythm on the court.
As Dunleavy said, Iguodala has a broad variety of off-the-court endeavors should he opt to retire. He could consider hanging up his sneakers and more closely monitoring the progress of his 16-year-old son, Andre II, who spent last season at Head-Royce School in Oakland.
“But it’s Andre Iguodala,” Dunleavy said. “So, you never know.”
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That much is true. Not until a few days before training camp last season did Iguodala announce his decision to return.
Another year is possible, but there is little optimism of it this time around.