Andrew Wiggins has been one of the Golden State Warriors‘ best players in recent times. He has not been playing for the team for a while now, missing 21 games in a row. The reason for his long absence was not disclosed at first, as the Warriors franchise chose to respect the privacy Andrew wished for. This led fans to speculate that his girlfriend, Mychal Johnson, cheated on him.
Golden State’s Andrew Wiggins plans to attend Warriors-Thunder on Tuesday. The reason for Wiggins’ leave of absence since mid-February is that his father, Mitchell Wiggins, has been dealing with a serious medical situation, sources close to the situation say. 🙏🏽
— Shams Charania (@ShamsCharania) April 3, 2023
Johnson buried these rumors and made sure to bash the fans who spread false claims on social media. Recently, it was revealed that Andrew was on the sidelines for a significant amount of time because of his father, Mitchell Wiggins.
Mitchell had been dealing with a medical situation and his son chose to be away from the NBA court to stay by his side. The reports have shed some light on Mitchell Wiggins, who the NBA world is familiar with.
Mitchell Wiggins is a former NBA player who played for several teams including the Houston Rockets and Philadelphia 76ers
The Indiana Pacers drafted Mitchell as the 23rd overall pick at the 1983 NBA Draft. Unfortunately for him, Mitchell did not manage to break into the Pacers roster at the time. However, the Pacers traded Mitchell to the Chicago Bulls for Sidney Lowe and a second-round pick. This trade was the breakthrough in Mitchell’s career, as he proved to be crucial for the Bulls team back then.
He cemented his place as a regular shooting guard on the Bulls roster but still didn’t manage to stay with the team for long. Unfortunately for Wiggins, he didn’t manage to play with the legendary Michael Jordan, who arrived in Chicago after the 1984 NBA Draft.
Wiggins then moved to the Houston Rockets and even went to the 1986 NBA Finals with them. The team ultimately lost to 17x NBA champs, the Boston Celtics. However, Mitchell failed a drug test and tested positive for cocaine, along with then-teammate Lewis Lloyd. The NBA suspended the Rockets duo for two and a half years.
Mitchell played for basketball teams in the minor leagues, including the Mississippi Jets (now Allentown Jets). Despite returning to the league in 1998, Mitchell’s performances weren’t convincing enough for the Rockets board to sign him on a new contract. The Canadian then signed for the Philadelphia 76ers during free agency.
Mitchell ended his NBA career in 1992, but played in the Greek League until 2003. He even managed to win the Greek League All-Star award three times during this period. Throughout his NBA career, Mitchell averaged 10.0 points, 1.6 assists, and 3.2 rebounds in 389 regular-season games.
