Warriors’ Andrew Wiggins aware of money lost by not being vaccinated
The Golden State Warriors are in a tough situation moving forward. With under a month until the season commences and just a few weeks until the preseason kicks off, forward Andrew Wiggins has yet to be vaccinated for Covid-19.
In the eyes of the league, that’s not a problem as the NBAPA has made it known that a vaccination mandate is a nonstarter. However, for teams like Golden State and Brooklyn, there’s an extra piece to that puzzle.
The Golden State Warriors are in a tough situation with Andrew Wiggins, who is fully aware, he’ll lose out on $15 million, still unvaccinated.
It’s individual cities that can also have mandates on indoor events.
They can put restrictions on indoor events, as the city of San Francisco has done. San Fran has a mandate that notes anyone at a sizable indoor event, like games which are held at the Chase Center, must be vaccinated.
Andrew Wiggins isn’t. Combining the two thoughts, Wiggins will be able to play road games but not at the Chase Center. If he can’t play, he’ll lose out on that money, which could top $15 million. But, while it seems like quite a bit, he’s fully aware of what he’d be losing out on.
Per Marc Spears, Wiggins, who rightly notes that it’s “my problem,” knows what he’ll lose out on.
When asked the potential major money he could lose, Warriors forward Andrew Wiggins said: "It's my problem. Not yours."
— Marc J. Spears (@MarcJSpears) September 27, 2021
It wouldn’t just be Wiggins’ financials that will be impacted by him not playing. The Warriors would lose out on their second-best scorer from a season ago which could cost them a spot in the postseason.
Wiggins neared 20 points per game and had the best field-goal and three-point percentages of his career in his first full season with the Warriors.
While, if everything goes as planned, five-time All-Star Klay Thompson will be returning this season, he won’t be back till January which could prove to be too late. The Warriors may need Wiggins to be in contention when Thompson returns.
Without superhuman performances from Stephen Curry last season, the Warriors may have never recovered after a lackadaisical start to the season. Curry could return to that level, but even then, without Wiggins, he may struggle.
Wiggins transformed into an all-out two-way stud last season. It’s a tough situation, especially as he’s already been denied a religious exemption from the league. For now, it seems unlikely he gets the jab and also unlikely for San Fran’s mandate to change.
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We’ll keep an eye on this situation, but there shouldn’t be many changes for the foreseeable future. The team’s home opener is October 21. He’ll miss preseason games before then though.