Andre Iguodala Channels Iconic Meme By Naming NBA Player He Fears in the Clutch

The 2015 Finals MVP made a surprising choice.

Former All-Star and four-time champion Andre Iguodala had an NBA career that was both inordinately successful and deeply esoteric. 

A genuinely great player with one All-Star Game appearance and a Finals MVP award to his name, Iguodala is increasingly known by younger fans for figuring in one of the NBA’s most enduring memes—former ESPN host Max Kellerman’s 2019 declaration that he would put the fate of the universe in the hands of Iguodala.

During a recent interview on The Ryen Russillo Podcast, Iguodala was asked a question with near-identical phrasing as the one Molly Qerim asked Kellerman on First Take all those years ago.

“Tie game, playoffs, who are you most scared of?” Russillo asked Iguodala.

“(Dallas Mavericks guard) Kyrie Irving. It’s not even close,” Iguodala said. “For the last-second shot, I’m going with Kyrie. You’re talking about fear factor, at any given moment, or for like that moment, Kyrie.”

I WANT IGUODALA 🗣️

... but who would Andre Iguodala pick to take the final shot with the game on the line?

He gave his answer on the latest #RussilloPod.@andre @ryenarussillo pic.twitter.com/OQ65ayfCjp

— The Ringer (@ringer) February 29, 2024

It’s worth noting that Iguodala did not endorse Irving as his go-to shooter—as Kellerman endorsed Iguodala—with “the fate of the universe on the line, with the Martians pointing the death beam at the Earth (and) you better hit it.”