Andrew Wiggins explained his decision to get the COVID-19 after he had hoped to avoid it while continuing his NBA career.

"The only options were to get vaccinated or not play in the NBA," Wiggins said after the Warriors' preseason opener at the Portland Trail Blazers, his first public comments since getting the shot. "It was a tough decision. Hopefully, it works out in the long run and in 10 years I'm still healthy."

The topic of Wiggins' vaccination status came into question prior to training camp given the restrictions from the San Francisco Department of Public Health requiring anyone age 12 or over to be vaccinated to attend indoor events.

Wiggins explained why he was so hesitant to get the shot and noted that he doesn't hold the situation against the Warriors.

"They didn't make the rule," Wiggins said. "But I guess to do certain stuff, to work, I guess you don't own your body. That's what it comes down to. If you want to work in society today, then I guess they made the rules of what goes in your body and what you do. Hopefully, there's a lot of people out there that are stronger than me and keep fighting, stand for what they believe, and hopefully, it works out for them."