Andre Iguodala delivered a fantastic backhanded compliment to Matthew Dellavedova after Thursday night’s Game One of the NBA Finals, in which Iguodala essentially says he respects Dellavedova’s dirtiness because it keeps him in the league.
Dellavedova hit Iguodala in the nuts during Thursday night’s game, and when asked about it, Iguodala savagely dismissed Dellavedova.
“There’s a lot of emotions going out there,” Iguodala said, via James Herbert of CBS Sports. “I respect a lot of guys’ hustles in this league. And you got guys who gotta get a little dirty and gotta get a little physical to make a life and to feed their families. So I can only respect that. And for me it’s just keeping my composure, continuing to try to do things for my team and help us win.”
That’s one way to swat away a pest: basically say they’re only in the league because they play on the dirty side and agitate.
And hey, who are we to argue with what Delly does? Dellavedova’s grit and intensity have made him an internet meme and even got him a shoe deal. Clearly he has a niche that works for him, and much as opponents hate him, his teammates seem to love him. It doesn’t look like his tactics worked on Iguodala, though – in fact, given that Golden State pulled away with a 9-0 run after the incident, it seems to have backfired on him.
