Zach LaVine, Tyus Jones say Andrew Wiggins will fit well with Warriors

Andrew Wiggins could end up thriving in Golden State because of having an adjusted role alongside Steph Curry and Klay Thompson.

Andrew Wiggins, Zach LaVine and Tyus Jones were all teammates on the Minnesota Timberwolves for two seasons.

Now, Wiggins holds the title of former Timberwolves player after being traded to the Golden State Warriors on Thursday.

According to ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski, Wiggins was traded in exchange for D’Angelo Russell, Jacob Evans III, Omari Spellman, a 2021 top-three protected pick and 2021 second-round pick. Wiggins, the former No. 1 overall draft pick in 2014, had played with the Timberwolves his whole career before being traded.

With Wiggins in a new situation, LaVine and Jones spoke on Twitter about how their former teammate could succeed in the Bay Area.

With this most recent trade, the Warriors are even more in flux, particularly heading into next season. Alec Burks and Glenn Robinson III, two players who emerged as key Warriors this season, were traded Wednesday to the Philadelphia 76ers. Willie Cauley-Stein was traded to the Dallas Mavericks near the end of January.

Wiggins isn’t a bad player, but he hasn’t exactly lived up to his draft spot. Still, assuming Steph Curry and Klay Thompson are back at full strength next season, he will end up being in a role where he does not have to score as many points.

Not having as big a role could allow Wiggins to put up more meaningful numbers and have a better effect on the floor. This season, Wiggins ranked second in scoring behind Karl Anthony-Towns. Wiggins is talented — he’s averaged at least 20 points per game three times, including this season.

But for him, being the No. 1 or even No. 2 option isn’t really ideal, as he’s shot 44.1% from the field for his career while having a career 25.6% usage percentage, according to Basketball Reference.

The Warriors will play the Los Angeles Lakers on Saturday at Chase Center.