Andre Iguodala will be remembered as a champion, NBA Finals MVP and terrific all-around player when he decides to hang up his jersey. Unfortunately for him, the first thing that will come to mind for many basketball fans when you mention his name is "The Block."
You may remember — like you could possibly forget — LeBron James' incredible block on Iguodala late in Game 7 of the 2016 NBA Finals. With the score tied at 89 late in the fourth quarter, J.R. Smith took a swipe at Iguodala's fastbreak layup attempt, giving James the extra second he needed to come out of nowhere and pin the ball against the glass. Kyrie Irving later followed with a clutch 3-pointer, and Kevin Love somehow stayed in front of Stephen Curry on the ensuing possession to preserve the lead. The Cavs defeated the Warriors to capture the city of Cleveland's first title in roughly eight centuries (don't check the dates on that).
NBA PREDICTIONS: Mapping out the Warriors' path to the title
Iguodala finally opened up about the now legendary block, and it turns out he feels the same way about the play as the rest of us.
"If J.R. is not there, I'm dunking it. Well, I don't know if I'm dunking, though, because I was about to die out there," Iguodala told ESPN.com. "But I give him all respect. When he blocked it, I thought somebody got shot. I laugh about it all the time. People try to joke on me. I still get mentions all day from fans always talking about the block.
"I'm like, 'Man, that s— was so dope to me, too.' I was a fan. That s— was amazing. When he blocked it, I was like, 'Damn, somebody got shot.' I thought it was funny. Somebody just made a good play. What you want me to do? If you enjoy the game of basketball, you should just be like, 'Dude made a great play. F— it.'"
MORE: Durant, Curry try to make sense of awful season opener
When looking back at a play of that magnitude, it would be natural for Iguodala as a competitor to blame himself or break down all the ways he could have scored. But guess what? LeBron still exists in every scenario.
"People don't realize, somebody just made a great play," Iguodala said. "There's nothing to change about somebody making a great play because I even thought I could have went off to the other side [of the rim], but [LeBron] was so high over the rim, he would have had both sides covered. I mean, I wouldn't have changed anything about it. If somebody just makes a great play, you just give them respect for making a great play."
Iguodala sums it up nicely. "Dude made a great play." And it's one we will all be watching over and over for a long time.
