Plotting a Path for Andrew Wiggins’ return to the Golden State Warriors

Andrew Wiggins is back! At least he’s back in The Bay and expected to be in attendance for the Golden State Warriors matchup with the Oklahoma City Thunder at Chase Center on Tuesday, according to The Athletic’s Shams Charania.

Charania also reports that Wiggins’ absence, which has now stretched to 22-straight games since before the All-Star break on February 13, has been caused by a serious medical situation to his father Mitchell.

Can Andrew Wiggins return to his All-Star level best in time for the Golden State Warriors to make a sustained run at back-to-back NBA championships?

Golden State have three regular season games remaining, all of which are critical to the defending champions avoiding the uneasy nature of the Play-In tournament. ESPN’s Kendra Andrews reports ‘it is unclear how much Wiggins will play in the team’s final three games’, though we can assume any potential on-court activity would only take place over the final two.

Putting Wiggins into the cauldron of these near must-win games is a risky proposition, but the fact is that every game is important for the Warriors from here on out. It’s also true that Golden State can’t win it all without Wiggins contributing at a high-level, and therefore they have to take the chance of reintegrating him at a fairly rapid rate.

Donte DiVincenzo is currently starting in place of Wiggins, and you’d have to imagine that might continue until the postseason at the very least. Given Steve Kerr revealed that the Canadian had been working out individually on a daily basis during his absence, perhaps he’s at a physical base that would allow him to come off the bench and play 12-18 minutes. Wiggins could also play those minutes in a starting role, allowing him to build back into his regular role straightaway.

If the Warriors do secure a playoff spot without the Play-In Tournament, then that will give them nearly a full week off before the start of the postseason. That could prove a critical period in ramping up Wiggins’ training to a point where he could play 25-30+ minutes from the start of the playoffs. If they have to go through the play-in, then that opens a more complex scenario that’s less than ideal.

At the end of the day, we won’t know what the path forward looks like until the franchise gives some kind of indication on Wiggins’ readiness to return to the floor. However, it’s safe to say the current plight of the Warriors season means his return will be further accelerated than if this was a mid-season comeback.