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Vaccine-hesitant NBA star Andrew Wiggins is now vaccinated, coach says

"He just told me today that he was fine with us acknowledging it, and that will be the end of it," Wiggins' coach said.
Andrew Wiggins of the Golden State Warriors looks on during the game against the Sacramento Kings on March 25, 2021, in Sacramento, Calif.
Andrew Wiggins of the Golden State Warriors during a game against the Sacramento Kings in Sacramento, Calif., on March 25.Rocky Widner / NBAE via Getty Images file

Andrew Wiggins, the Golden State Warriors forward who balked being vaccinated against the coronavirus, has been vaccinated, the team's coach said Sunday.

"He just told me today that he was fine with us acknowledging it, and that will be the end of it," coach Steve Kerr told reporters.

Wiggins, who had sought a religious exemption from San Francisco's vaccination requirement, was one of several NBA players who had declined to get the shots.

The league said last week that it had reviewed and denied Wiggins' request for the exemption, a decision that would have barred him from playing home games.

Wiggins, 26, had bristled as he fielded numerous questions about his initial decision to refuse vaccination, opting to blame the media.

"I'll say something when I'm ready. The only thing the media has done is kind of make it bigger than it has to be," he said.

Had he not been vaccinated, Wiggins would have been restricted from playing games in his home state, California. The NBA flexed its muscle last week, taking aim at vaccination resisters' bank accounts.

"Any player who elects not to comply with local vaccination mandates will not be paid for games that he misses," NBA spokesman Mike Bass said in a statement.