The Andrew Wiggins vaccination story presented a fascinating conundrum that thousands of athletes can relate to. Athletes want to have full control of what they put in their bodies because that’s what makes them millions in salary. Wiggins doesn’t know how the vaccines will affect him 10 years down the road. He went as far as to request a spiritual exemption. The NBA denied the exemption. Wiggins hasn’t disclosed what spiritual beliefs should’ve exempted him from the vaccine mandates.
Why Did Andrew Wiggins Get Vaccinated?
San Francisco’s vaccination requirements banned nonconforming players from playing at Golden State Warriors games. Wiggins would’ve lost more than $350,000 per home game. He would’ve potentially surrendered half of his $31.6 million salary. That wasn’t a sacrifice that he was willing to make in the prime of his NBA career. Therefore, he got the vaccine. He had this to say in October 2021:
“It feels good to play. But getting vaccinated, that’s going to be something that stays in my mind for a long time. It’s not something I wanted to do. But was kind of forced.”
“I don’t know what it’s going to do to me in 10 years. Gene damage? There’s studies on whether or not it’s going to cause cancerous cells. I don’t know what it’s going to do to my body. There’s a lot of stuff. I can go on for days about why I didn’t want to get it. Most importantly, it’s just that I don’t know what is going to happen, or what it’s going to do to my body in 10, 15 or 20 years, or do to my kids, future kids.”
“But it’s something that had to get done.”
Andrew Wiggins, from NBC Sports (Monte Poole), Warriors’ Andrew Wiggins Is Vaccinated, Skeptical, And Just As Rich.”
Andrew Wiggins Vaccination Regrets
Everything seems to have worked out perfectly for Wiggins. He played and started in 95 of a possible 104 games. He finished the season with his first All Star appearance and his first NBA championship. This was easily the best year of his career. He’s set up for a HUGE payday when his rookie contract extension expires after the 2022-23 season.
During July 2022, Wiggins spoke with Mark Camran of FanSided for about 10 minutes. Wiggins talked about why he regrets getting the vaccine. Camran finished the discussion saying, “You chose hoop at the end of the day.” The discussion starts at the 7:36 mark.
Andrew Wiggins Vaccination = A Faustian Bargain?
A pact whereby a person trades something of supreme moral or spiritual importance, such as personal values or the soul, for some worldly or material benefit, such as knowledge, power, or riches.
Brittanica, Faustian Bargain Definition
Most people know of the Faustian bargain as “Deal with the devil.” Wiggins is an athlete who puts a lot of personal value in his health. He went as far as to submit a religious exemption. The long-term health and spirituality concerns weren’t enough to open him up to losing wealth during the prime of his career.
Former NBA center Enes Kanter is a devout Muslim. He spoke out against players who used religion as a reason for refusing the vaccine:
“If a guy’s not getting vaccinated because of his religion, I feel like we are in a time where the religion and science has to go together. I’ve talked to a lot of religious guys. I’m like: ‘It saves people’s lives, so what is more important than that?”
Enes Kanter, written by Tom Westerholm of boston.com, Multiple’ Celtics players reportedly have not received COVID-19 vaccine
No Hate From Me
I’m not big on getting into vaccine debates. I respect both sides of the argument. You could die because you didn’t get the vaccine and you could die because you got the vaccine. One choice or the other, it’s almost as if you’re playing Russian Roulette with yourself.
Wiggins is a spiritual man so he should find peace knowing that God will take care of him and his family. There’s no need to ponder on what might have been had he made a different choice.
Enjoy the now and deal with the later.
