Andrew Wiggins is set to return to the Golden State Warriors this week after missing four straight games due to a personal matter, according to The Athletic's Shams Charania and Anthony Slater.
After tending to a serious family emergency, Wiggins will resume basketball activities with the team and he will suit up for Wednesday night's game against the Milwaukee Bucks, according to ESPN's Kendra Andrews. It is worth noting that Wiggins did participate in practice on Tuesday and returned to San Francisco on Monday.
Andrew Wiggins' excused absence
While no details have been given as to why Wiggins missed the last four games, Warriors head coach Steve Kerr has addressed the matter, stating that the forward was given excused absences to address his problems.
“Yeah, this is a personal issue that he's dealing with, and we expect him back,” Kerr stated recently. “It's gonna remain private. Rick [Celebrini] has been in contact with him. I have too. We expect him back.”
The Warriors dealt with a similar situation last season with Wiggins, as he missed roughly two months of action and did not return until the start of the playoffs due to personal reasons he was attending to with his family.
Although his numbers have declined drastically this season, Wiggins is still an integral part of the Warriors' core. In a total of 51 games, he has averaged 12.7 points and 4.3 rebounds per game while shooting 45.5 percent from the floor and 35.1 percent from three-point range. Wiggins is still a versatile two-way weapon that the Warriors need in order to be successful, which is why his return at this point in the season is vital.
Golden State is currently 32-28 on the season. After losing by 52 points to the Boston Celtics on Sunday, the Warriors once again find themselves in the 10-seed spot in the Western Conference. They are 2.5 games behind the Phoenix Suns for the 6-seed with only 22 games remaining.
The Warriors will play their next game on Wednesday night in San Francisco against the Milwaukee Bucks. If Wiggins is unable to return for that game, his next chance to play will be the day after against the Chicago Bulls.