Watch former KU guard Andrew Wiggins’ highlight-reel dunk for Warriors in Game 3 win

Former Kansas guard Andrew Wiggins’ smothering defense on NBA superstar Luka Doncic was cited as one of the main reasons the Golden State Warriors downed Dallas in Game 1 of the NBA’s Western Conference Finals on Wednesday in San Francisco.

Wiggins’ offense — specifically a remarkable, one-handed dunk in the face of Doncic — proved to be the defining moment of Game 3, a 109-100 Warriors victory that gave Golden State a 3-0 lead in the best-of-seven series Sunday night in Dallas.

The 6-foot-7, 195-pound Wiggins trended on Twitter after accepting a pass from Steph Curry, darting down the middle of the lane and slamming on 6-7, 230-pound Doncic, who fell to the floor.

Initially the bucket was erased as result of a charging call on Wiggins. Coach Steve Kerr’s challenge proved successful, however, as the refs allowed the dunk that gave Golden State a 10-point lead with about 6 1/2 minutes left to play.

It was as impressive a dunk of this, or any season.

“Drops the sledgehammer!” play-by-play announcer Kevin Harlan bellowed on the TNT telecast as Wiggins ripped the ball through the hoop.

Hall of Famer Magic Johnson gushed about Wiggins on Twitter, writing: “Wiggins is playing the best basketball I’ve ever seen him play!! He had the dunk of the year over Doncic and his playoff high 27 points (to Doncic’s 40) and 11 rebounds tonight in the Warriors victory.”

Some other reactions….

“Oh my goodness,” Tweeted former NBA player Baron Davis, who added in a second tweet, “Put that poster on the wall. Say a prayer for the victim.”

“Damn Wiggs,” exclaimed Zach LaVine of the Chicago Bulls on Twitter.

“That was high school Wiggs,” tweeted Darius Garland of the Cleveland Cavaliers.

“Offensive foul or not … dunk of the year!” wrote former NBA player Jamal Crawford.

“ARE YOU KIDDING @22wiggins,” read a post on the Golden State Warriors Twitter account

“Andrew Wiggins explodes to the rim on TNT,” read a post on the official NBA Twitter account.

“Andrew Wiggins put Luka on a poster!” tweeted ESPN SportsCenter.

Wiggins finished with 27 points, 11 rebounds and three assists. Doncic had 40 points and 11 boards for Dallas. Steph Curry had 31 points and 11 assists with five rebounds for the Warriors.

Asked to give “his view of what happened when Wiggins dunked on you,” Doncic said in the interview room: “I mean I got hit a little bit, but that was impressive, I’m not going to lie. I saw the video again, I was like, ooh. That was pretty incredible. I wish I had those bunnies.”

Mavs coach Jason Kidd was asked about Wiggins after the loss that put the Mavs in an 0-3 hole: “He is a talented player. He’s an All-Star. So when you look at what they’re asking him to do, he’s doing it at a high level.”

One crazy thing to note about Wiggins’ dunk is he injured his ankle in Game 2 of the series on Friday. Wiggins said before Sunday’s game his ankle “felt good. I don’t think it’ll affect (his lateral movement).”

“Just feeling the energy. That was the main thing when I saw the rim. That’s all I saw,” Wiggins said after the game, adding, “they tried to take it away from me but Steve challenged and we won. Thank him for that.”

Teammate Curry was asked if it was his favorite Wiggins dunk of all time: “Absolutely ... Fourth quarter, a big win ... and we got to see like 800 replays because of the challenge so, appreciate you Marc (Davis, ref who made the call), that was nice,” Curry said.

Noted Klay Thompson of the Warriors: “He (Wiggins) was looking like Dominique Wilkins out there.”

Draymond Green added of Wiggins following Game 3: “It’s the same thing I’ve been seeing all playoffs, taking on the challenge of guarding guys. He’s been taking on this challenge for the last three games in this series and guarding Luka. And then on offensive end, he’s being aggressive, he’s attacking the rim, he’s knocking the shot down, he’s coming up with extra possessions, offensive boards. He’s been aggressive all around all playoffs and it’s been great to see it and it’s obviously been huge for our team.”

Wiggins averaged 17.4 points and 5.9 rebounds a game in 2013-14 at KU before being selected No. 1 overall in the NBA Draft, He’s thriving with Golden State after starting his career in Minnesota with the Timberwolves.

“He’s just showing everybody what he’s capable of in terms of impacting winning,” Curry said of Wiggins after Game 1 of the series after scoring 21 points and grabbing 12 rebounds with four assists.

“We’re asking him to take on that challenge (of guarding Doncic) and be aggressive offensively,” Curry added.

“That’s why he was the No. 1 pick (in 2014 Draft),” Thompson said of Wiggins after Game 1, “You can’t teach that athleticism. You can’t teach that length. You can’t teach his timing. I’m just happy the world is getting to see who he really is.”