Former NBA Player Mitchell Wiggins, Father of Warriors' Andrew Wiggins, Dies at 64

Mitchell Wiggins, the father of Golden State Warriors forward Andrew Wiggins, died at the age of 64.

Wiggins spent six seasons in the NBA and played for the Chicago Bulls, Houston Rockets and Philadelphia 76ers. His final year occurred with Philadelphia during the 1991-92 season.

"Today we mourn the passing of former Houston Rockets guard, Mitchell Wiggins," the Rockets said in a statement on Friday. "Our sincerest condolences go out to his family and friends."

A cause of death was not released publicly.

Wiggins was originally selected by the Indiana Pacers with a first-round pick in the 1983 NBA draft before spending his rookie season in Chicago. He averaged 10.0 points, 3.2 rebounds and 1.6 assists across 389 games played in his career.

He was suspended along with former Rockets teammate Lewis Lloyd after failing a drug test, missing two seasons from 1987 through 1989. After Wiggins came back to the association, he pledged $10 to the Salvation Army for every point scored. In his return season, he ended up averaging a career-high 15.5 points per game.

Wiggins also won a silver medal for the U.S. men's national team at the 1982 FIBA World Championship. He competed in professional leagues in Greece and France following his NBA career.

Andrew Wiggins missed extended time for the Warriors throughout the past two seasons due to personal reasons, appearing in just 37 contests during his 2022-23 campaign. Shams Charania of The Athletic later reported that the All-Star forward was away from the team to spend time with his father, who was dealing with a "serious medical situation."

The Warriors gave Wiggins full permission for his absences to spend time with his family.