Andrew Wiggins takes SECOND leave of absence from Golden State Warriors in two seasons, as Steve Kerr says guard is dealing with a ‘personal matter’

Golden State Warriors star Andrew Wiggins is taking a leave of absence from the team for the second time in two seasons.

Warriors head coach Steve Kerr said Wiggins is expected back, but did not provide a timeline on when the guard will return to basketball.

Wiggins is averaging 12.7 points and 4.3 rebounds per game this season while Golden State sits at 10th in the Western Conference standings, the lowest spot to qualify for the Play-In Tournament.

Before the All-Star break last season, Wiggins also took a leave of absence from the team to handle a family matter.

While Wiggins did not confirm what family matter in particular caused him to leave the Warriors, The Athletic reported that Wiggins’ father was dealing with a medical emergency.

Kerr did not go into detail about Wiggins’ situation, but did say it was a “personal matter.”

“We are in a position where Wiggs is a private individual and he is being asked to keep it private and we will respect that,” Kerr said. “So it doesn’t help that I’m sitting here trying to explain all that.”

“The bottom line is we respect Wiggs, we need him and we fully expect him back, but we just don’t know when that will be,” Kerr added.

Golden State has a four-game lead for the No. 10 spot in the Western Conference over the Utah Jazz.

The Warriors are also 3.5 games behind in fifth place, with the Phoenix Suns and New Orleans Pelicans occupying the final two spots guaranteed to make the Western Conference quarterfinals.

Wiggins’ last absence lasted 25 games, which was the remainder of the regular season.

His absence comes as the Warriors enjoyed their best run of the season, winning eleven of their last fourteen games.