Report: Wiggins out of Olympic picture for Canada
Published
It looks like Andrew Wiggins will not be a part of Canada's senior men's Olympic basketball team this summer.
According to Doug Smith of The Toronto Star, the Golden State Warriors are playing "hardball" with Wiggins while looking to trade him, preventing him from representing his country in Paris. Canada Basketball opens camp for its senior men's team Friday night in Toronto.
ESPN's John Hollinger notes the Warriors could be blocking Wiggins from participating due to a medical issue, which they can do for a legitimate health reason as opposed to arbitrarily blocking him from playing for Canada.
This leaves Canada with 19 players in camp, 12 of which currently play in the NBA.
Wiggins is heading into the second year of a four-year, $109 million contract that sees him earn just over $26 million next year.
The 29-year-old Toronto native averaged 13.2 points and 4.5 rebounds last season in 71 games. He played an integral part in the Warriors' 2022 NBA Championship run, making the All-Star Team for the first time in his career that season as well.
Wiggins arrived in Golden State in a February 2020 trade with the Minnesota Timberwolves. Prior to the deal, he had played his entire NBA career in Minnesota after being selected No. 1 overall in 2014. The Cleveland Cavaliers selected Wiggins first, but dealt him to the T-Wolves in a deal involving forward Kevin Love.