The Golden State Warriors’ starting small forward from Canada, Andrew Wiggins, may not be eligible to play in his home arena this upcoming season because he is unvaccinated.

San Francisco, the new home of the Warriors, is now requiring proof of vaccination for any large indoor events. The Warriors play their home games at the Chase Center, which is located in the heart of the northern California city. This poses quite the threat for unvaccinated NBA players — they simply will not be allowed to play. 

Does this mean that Wiggins may not be able to compete in 41 home games?

As of now, that is what it looks like. Not only 41 games; postseason home games would be off-limits as well if the current measures are still in place come May. Earlier this month, the NBA sent out a memo outlining new COVID-19 regulations and although it revealed strict new policies, they are not requiring players to be vaccinated. There is little that the NBA can do, however, when it comes to changing local legislation, so It may get complicated for unvaccinated players. 

Wiggins is eligible to be traded by the Warriors, which could be the only reasonable play since these regulations are unlikely to change. Another possible option could be a religious exemption. On March 22, Wiggins publicly revealed his position regarding the vaccination. “To each his own, really. whoever wants to get it, can get it; whoever doesn’t want to get it, don’t get it,” he said. “Right now, I’m not getting it, but it’s no knock on anyone else that’s getting it. I make my own decisions, but right now, I decided not to get it.”

Wiggins joined the Warriors during the 2019-2020 season. The 26-year-old started 71 games and averaged 18.6 points in the 2020-2021 campaign.

The Washington Football Team released quarterback Dwayne Haskins on Monday, just one day after he was benched in the team’s loss to the Carolina Panthers. Haskins will count $8.5 million in dead-salary cap space next year.

In a statement, Washington head coach Ron Rivera explained that he met with Haskins on Monday to let him that he was being released.

“I told him that I believe it benefits both parties that we go our separate ways. We want to thank Dwayne for his contributions these last two seasons and wish him well moving forward,” said Rivera.

Rivera told Washington Football Team owner Dan Snyder that he wanted to let go of Haskins and Snyder gave him the go-ahead to make the move.

That same morning, via video conference, Rivera told the media that Washington would start Taylor Heinicke if Alex Smith was unable to play Sunday’s game due to his ongoing calf injury. A victory in Sunday’s season finale game against the Philadelphia Eagles in Philadelphia could give Washington the NFC East.

In a tweet, Haskins said: “I take full responsibility for not meeting the standards of an NFL QB & will become a better man & player because of this experience.”

The release was led up to by events that took place earlier in the season. Last week, a maskless Haskins was photographed at his girlfriend’s birthday party in a hotel with strippers just hours after the team’s loss to the Seattle Seahawks. 

Haskins was violating COVID-19 protocol, so he was fined $40,000 and was stripped of his captaincy. Haskins was also fined earlier in the season for making a reservation for a family friend at the team hotel the night before the team played and lost to the New York Giants.

Haskins started Washington’s first four games of the season but was benched after a 30-10 loss to the Baltimore Ravens. Washington’s coaches did not like how Haskins was preparing during the week, saying he fell short of NFL’s quarterback standards. In that game, Haskins had his first 300-yard passing game and, after celebrating in the locker room, was benched the next day.

Haskins was the third-string quarterback behind Kyle Allen and Smith for the following four games. However, when Smith fell to a calf injury, Haskins became the primary backup. While his preparation has been said to improve, it wasn’t up to the desired level of the team, leading to his release.