NBA Free Agency 2013: Golden State Warriors ink Andre Iguodala

Andre Iguodala has just signed a four-year, $48 million contract with the Golden State Warriors, per Yahoo! Sports NBA writer Adrian Wojnarowski.

Iguodala, who was sent to Denver a year ago in the blockbuster trade that landed Dwight Howard in Los Angeles, opted out of the final year of his contract with the Nuggets. According to Wojnarowski, the Sacramento Kings offered Iguodala a four-year deal worth $56 million but retracted their offer when he did not immediately accept.

Iguodala joins an up-and-coming Warriors team that made the playoffs last season for the first time since 2007 and just the second time since 1994. When owners Joe Lacob and Peter Guber bought the team in 2010, they promised that the Warriors would be headed in a new direction, and this deal proves exactly that.

As a do-it-all perimeter player, Iguodala is a premier defender in the NBA while still having the ability to score in bunches. Since 2006, he has averaged fewer than five rebounds or five assists just once.

Iguodala's role with the team remains to be seen, but he would presumably start over Harrison Barnes, who would bring a good scoring punch off the bench.

The Warriors were over the projected salary cap limit of $58.5 million but dealt Andris Biedrins, Richard Jefferson and Brandon Rush to the Utah Jazz to clear space.

The loss of Jefferson is insignificant, as the former lottery pick averaged just 3.1 points last season.

Biedrins, however, was due to earn increased minutes this season, with Andrew Bogut still dealing with injuries and backup center Festus Ezeli out for six to nine months after knee surgery.

The Warriors were eager to bring back Rush, who played fewer than two games last season before tearing his ACL. Rush was expected to be a "three-and-D" player to complement three-point assassins Stephen Curry and Klay Thompson. But in Iguodala, the Warriors now have an even better defender on the perimeter.