Andre Iguodala Believes This 4x All-Star Would Be Better Than Giannis in Today's Game

Andre Iguodala’s voice is one you should respect. He played a long and very successful NBA career. Now he is the Executive Director of the National Basketball Players Association (NBPA), and many trust what he has to say on matters of both basketball and life. 

In a recent interview on the Dan Le Batard Show, Iguodala explained that every championship team in NBA history had a top-5 player in the league leading them. 

He was then challenged and was asked about the 2004 Detroit Pistons, who many consider one of the most team effort Champions of the last few decades. Iguodala responded with some extremely bold comments about that team’s best player. 

“Rasheed Wallace. Probably could have been a top-5 player in the league for a ten-year stretch. He just chose, “I’ll do my thing over here”. He was shooting threes from half court… left-handed and right-handed. If Rasheed Wallace played in the league today… He’d be better than Giannis, and I love Giannis.”

While Iguodala is someone to listen to on this matter, he played against both of these players during his career; this may be a stretch. 

In four fewer seasons played, Giannis has five more All-Star appearances, two more MVP awards, nine more All-NBA selections, and more points, rebounds, and assists than Wallace in 200+ fewer games. 

Iguodala brings up that he believes even if Wallace didn’t accomplish it, it doesn’t mean that he couldn’t. He says that Wallace would have been better in today’s league, one full of spacing, shooting, and less physicality. 

Still, it’s hard to say that Wallace could have been top-5 in the league for 10 years when he was never even voted onto an All-NBA team. That’s for the top-15 players in the league (although that is somewhat skewed by position). 

These are the debates we will never know the answer to. That being said, it certainly feels like Iguodala is selling Giannis and his dominance a little short.