Wiggins denied religious exemption for COVID-19 vaccine, can't play at home

The NBA denied Golden State Warriors forward Andrew Wiggins' request for a religious exemption from the COVID-19 vaccine, the league announced Friday.

As long as Wiggins remains unvaccinated, he will not be permitted to play in Warriors home games in San Francisco.

Public health departments in San Francisco and New York City have mandated that players must be vaccinated in order to play home games in 2021-22. That requirement will not apply to visiting players, however.

The 26-year-old Canadian's decision to forgo the vaccine has reportedly caused concern within the organization about his status for the new campaign, which begins Oct. 19. However, those closely tied to the situation expect Wiggins to get vaccinated following the denial of his request, The Athletic's Anthony Slater reports.

Wiggins can avoid missing any action if he opts to receive the single dose Johnson & Johnson vaccine in the next few days, since he'd be considered fully vaccinated by Oct. 13, the same day San Francisco's vaccine mandate goes into effect.

As of Thursday, it's been reported that approximately 90% of all NBA players are fully vaccinated.