The Cavaliers took Bennett with the No. 1 pick in the 2013 draft in a surprise move (most teams had him ranked between eighth and out of the lottery).
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Anthony Bennett played well for Canada this summer – he averaged 7.6 points per game on 64.7 percent shooting, plus pulled down 5.4 rebounds a game in the FIBA Americas tournament.
Anthony Bennett’s release would come just days before the Timberwolves training camp, which is scheduled to begin next Tuesday September 29th.
According to Yahoo’s Adrian Wojnarowski, Bennett’s reps have been eager for a buyout to offer him a chance for more playing time elsewhere. The Timberwolves also already have 16 guaranteed contracts on their roster so they had to eventually let one player go.
The Wolves are in buyout discussions with third-year forward and 2013 first overall pick Anthony Bennett, a person with knowledge of the talks said today. With youngsters like Karl-Anthony Towns, Nemanja Bjelica, and Adreian Payne in the frontcourt alongside Kevin Garnett and Nikola Pekovic, Minnesota just doesn’t have enough room to spend time developing a player of Bennett’s caliber – in this season or ones going forward. Nevertheless, no one beyond the Cavaliers front office had Bennett pegged as a top-10 pick in that draft – never mind No. 1 overall. Bennett is athletic, long, and can run the floor, but all of his skill still need polishing.
There were trade rumors involving Bennett over the summer, so this news is not too surprising. He was so unproductive that his 19-point game as a rookie was his highlight.
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But some team should give him a shot.
