Andre Iguodala enjoyed a lengthy and successful NBA career, serving as a versatile forward who contributed to four championship runs with the Golden State Warriors. But Iggy proved to be the outlier in his hometown of Springfield, Illinois. The 19-year veteran explained that no one made it to the league where he was from. Most of the time, kids from his city would often return home after their freshman year of college due to academic failures.
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Iguodala proved to be the man to make it out, though, and he took full advantage. The two-time All-Defensive wing shared that he decided to attend the University of Arizona to get as far away from his hometown as possible. He was excited to leave home and prove that he was good enough not to have to return to Springfield empty-handed.
Considering the type of educators Iguodala and his classmates grew up with, though, it’s understandable why the 41-year-old was so eager to leave home. Growing up, Iggy’s teachers weren’t afraid to share their true thoughts on their students, even if it would break them.
“Like I had teachers tell me, ‘Oh, you’re a good basketball player. From here, you’re gonna be a loser,'” Iguodala shared in a recent conversation with Kyrie Irving. “That was normal … That happened like once or twice … Like to have an adult say that to you at 13 is kinda crazy, right?”
Iguodala isn’t the first future pro athlete to be bombarded with discouraging comments from his former educators. But for a student like him, the criticism seemed unfounded. “And I even wrote in my book; I was academically further along than being an actual athlete. Like i was the only black male in my classes from middle school all the way through,” Iguodala continued.
Iggy even mentioned that teachers would question whether he was in the right classroom when they saw him attending higher-level lectures. Rather than letting his detractors negatively affect his psyche, though, Iguodala simply used the doubt as fuel.
“So that ended up being my motivation where it was always somebody from a different race telling me I can only go so far,” he added. “Even to this day, I’m like, yeah, yeah, yeah. I wake up every morning with a purpose … And everything’s rooted in our traumas … People don’t understand what athletes go through.”
Andre Iguodala’s journey to the pros was an uphill battle from the start, but it was one he overcame with remarkable success. While educators are meant to nurture and guide students, Iguodala encountered teachers who doubted his potential and told him he wouldn’t make it in life. Ironically, those discouraging words fueled his determination, pushing him to prove them wrong.
Had it not been for that doubt, perhaps he wouldn’t have lasted nearly two decades in the NBA. He could have returned to his normal life in Springfield. But instead, Iguodala turned criticism into motivation and used it to build a legendary career.
