Minnesota Timberwolves waive Anthony Bennett
Bad news, Anthony Bennett fan(s). Bennett is no longer a member of the Minnesota Timberwolves. The Wolves announced on Wednesday that they have waived the former first overall pick in the NBA Draft.
Bennett was drafted by the Cleveland Cavaliers with that first pick in the 2013 NBA Draft and was only in Cleveland for one season. On August 23, 2014 Bennett was part of the blockbuster deal that sent Kevin Love from Minnesota to Cleveland in exchange for Andrew Wiggins, Thaddeus Young of the Philadelphia 76ers and Bennet. The Wolves sent Luc Richard Mbah a Moute and Alexy Shved to Philadelphia.
Bennett appeared in 57 games for the Timberwolves last season and started in three of those contests. HE averaged 5.2 points per game and 3.8 rebounds per game in an average of just under 16 minutes.
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Those are not exactly horrible numbers off the bench, but they are not anything close to what is expected of a first overall pick that is still only 22-years-old. Sure, the 2013 class was probably one of the least promising in NBA history, but still 14th overall Shabazz Muhammad and 21st overall Gorgui Dieng have done a lot more in their playing time with the Wolves than Bennett has across two organizations now.
Wolves General Manager Milt Newton released a statement in the Wolves’ press release about the move:
"“In speaking with Anthony and his representatives over the past few days, we came to the conclusion that this was the best outcome for both parties. When you look at our team, our deepest position is probably power forward. This move balances out our roster while also allowing Anthony another opportunity in the NBA. He has a lot of talent and his play this summer internationally made this a difficult decision for us.During his short time here Anthony has carried himself with class and represented the franchise in a very professional manner. We thank him for his positive attitude and wish him the best of luck in his future endeavors.”"
Newton touched on it. The main reason that Bennett was let go is that he was on a roster full of power forwards. Karl-Anthony Towns, Kevin Garnett, Adreian Payne are just a couple of the names aiming for playing time at the four.
Next: The Wolves 2015-16 schedule!