Andre Iguodala spoke at length about his Olympic experience to Ryan Mahan of The State Journal-Register in Springfield, Illinois, where Iguodala was born and raised. The Nuggets swingman talked about finding his role on a star-studded Team USA and what it was like to win the gold medal, but his comments to the newspaper about the blockbuster trade that sent him to Denver were perhaps most significant. Iguodala's initial reaction to the deal seemed to indicate he wasn't pleased with the thought of playing for the Nuggets, but at his introductory press conference, he hinted that he'd like to stay in Denver long-term. Here's the latest from the former Sixer:
On finding out about the trade, which went down two days before the gold medal game:
“I heard some rumors the day before. I’ve been in a lot trade rumors in the past so that didn’t faze me. When the trigger was pulled, at that time, it kind of caught me off guard. I wasn’t shocked, but it caught me off guard because the timing was weird, you know, I’m trying to focus on Team USA and trying to help those guys win any way possible.’’
On fitting in with the Nuggets:
“I think I have a really great coach in George Karl. I think he’s one of the best coaches in the NBA right now. And I played with Andre Miller before and I had my best years with him. I’m looking forward to that situation and helping the team get further than they’ve ever been before."
About Denver's playing style:
“We’ll score a lot of points. We’ll have home-court advantage, and that will be great. It’s going to be really exciting. We’ll jet up and down the court, (having) pass-first point guards, and the way they pass it to the wings.”