Best Landing Spots for Former No. 1 NBA Draft Pick Anthony Bennett After Buyout
The trials and tribulations of Anthony Bennett continue, though the latest ones may lead to a new set of opportunities for the No. 1 pick of the 2013 NBA draft.
According to Yahoo Sports' Shams Charania, the Minnesota Timberwolves have reached an agreement with the former UNLV forward on a contract buyout. If he clears waivers, he'll become an unrestricted free agent, able to sign with any team of his choosing that offers him a new deal.
Sam Amico of Amico Hoops reported that the Portland Trail Blazers, Orlando Magic and Philadelphia 76ers have each shown early interest, but other squads will likely enter the fray in the coming days if he does in fact clear waivers. According to Charania and Yahoo Sports' Adrian Wojnarowski, only four teams have the requisite cap space or trade exception to claim Bennett: Portland, Philadelphia, the Utah Jazz and the Cleveland Cavaliers.
Long story short, Bennett will soon have a chance to play for a third team in his still-young NBA career. It could be his final opportunity to carve out a role of any significance, seeing as he's already heading down the unfortunate track to becoming one of the biggest busts in NBA history.
The Cavaliers originally took him with the first selection of that fateful 2013 draft, and he quickly submitted one of the most horrific rookie seasons ever. Granted, he was plagued by injuries that held him back on and off the court.
Shortly thereafter, Cleveland traded him to the 'Wolves in the deal Kevin Love and Andrew Wiggins headlined. Another go-round filled with subpar play followed, though an ankle injury late in the year killed any momentum that he was building up in the Land of 10,000 Lakes.
Now, there's not enough room on a crowded Minnesota roster filled with other young talents, and Bennett must hope a third landing spot is the charm as he looks to tap into the reserves of unrealized potential.
As we move through the best options, it's worth noting that these are ranked from his perspective. We're not concerned with which teams he could help the most but rather those that could prove most advantageous for him as he attempts to revitalize his quickly decaying professional career.
5. Portland Trail Blazers
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Per Charania, the Portland Trail Blazers are one of the teams initially interested in acquiring the services of this former No. 1 pick.
Why? Because of the Canadian connections on the staff.
Assistant coach Jay Triano has served as the head coach of Team Canada since 2012, and it's his second time in the role. He first led the charge on the sidelines from 1999 through 2004, and that was after earning captain status during his playing days with the squad.
But even if Triano could help imbue Bennett with confidence, they'd spend too much time together in Rip City. After all, the forward would basically be glued to the bench if he joined the Blazers, affording him plenty of minutes right next to the assistant coach while wearing warm-ups.
After a busy offseason during which Portland plunged firmly into rebuilding mode, this team doesn't exactly need more forwards.
At the 4, Meyers Leonard should emerge as the starter, while Ed Davis, Noah Vonleh and Cliff Alexander all have upside. There would be no need to commit any of the available minutes to Bennett. Even if he were able to switch over to the 3, he'd still be fighting with Al-Farouq Aminu, Moe Harkless and Mike Miller for playing time.
It's too crowded in the Moda Center, and Portland needs to see what it has in its myriad other young players on the roster.
4. Orlando Magic
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The Orlando Magic are in a fairly similar situation, though they don't have quite as many high-upside players at the 4.
Aaron Gordon, Channing Frye, Andrew Nicholson, Tobias Harris and Mario Hezonja make for a nice little logjam at the forward spots, and it's unlikely Bennett could beat many of them out for minutes. At best, he'd settle in as the No. 3 player at either position, narrowly edging out Nicholson if the confidence he appears to have gained this offseason carries over to the 2015-16 campaign.
Of course, Orlando would look like a more appealing destination if Bennett had proved that he could thrive at small forward—at least relatively. But that's not the case, as he's struggled in limited minutes at the smaller position.
82games.com doesn't even list him at small forward for any stretch of the 2014-15 season with the Timberwolves. Going back to his rookie season in Cleveland, he was nearly twice as bad during the extremely minimal time he spent at the 3.
If Orlando isn't entirely sold on the upside Nicholson offers—and, to a lesser extent, Dewayne Dedmon—at power forward, it could take a flier on Bennett as an end-of-the-bench player. But that would be about as much as he could expect.
That doesn't exactly make the Magic one of his ideal potential destinations, even if they could be one of the few squads willing to take a chance on him.
3. Washington Wizards
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Heading to the nation's capital would be a play more geared toward the future than the present.
Right now, the Washington Wizards frontcourt is an aging group of limited players, led by the 33-year-old Nene. Kris Humphries, who will celebrate his 31st birthday in February, is the primary backup. DeJuan Blair and Drew Gooden, who will turn 34 before the start of the 2015-16 campaign, are fighting to be third on the depth chart. As for the Pittsburgh product, he's only 26, but given his physical limitations, it's abundantly clear that he's never again going to fill a major role on a competitive squad.
That's not a particularly promising group, which is even more problematic because it will also be tasked with backing up an aging Marcin Gortat at center.
Some youth is needed here, and Bennett does have the ability to play both of the biggest positions on the floor. Sure, he's a bit undersized at center because of his 6'8" frame, but he can hold his own physically in small-ball lineups.
In Washington, there would be a significant amount of pressure on the former UNLV standout. This is expected to be a competitive squad in the Eastern Conference, and that's not exactly an ideal proving ground for a player who's already flamed out in two different locations.
But at least the ceiling is higher here than in the previous two potential destinations, if for no other reason than the need for fresh legs.
2. Philadelphia 76ers
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The Philadelphia 76ers are basically where young players go when they need another chance.
Take Thomas Robinson as an example. The Kansas star turned into a bust at each of his initial locales and was traded three times during his first three professional seasons before the Denver Nuggets waived him in 2014-15. Then, after Sam Hinkie's squad claimed him on waivers, he experienced some degree of success.
The Sixers are still in the midst of their seemingly perpetual rebuild, meaning they can afford to take fliers on players everyone else thinks of as busts. They're just always seeking upside. If they find a late-blooming prospect, it'll be cause for celebration in Philadelphia, only increasing the ceiling when the Sixers finally decide to compete.
With Nerlens Noel, Carl Landry, Richaun Holmes, Christian Wood, Jerami Grant and others capable of playing the 4, Philadelphia is brimming over with bodies at power forward. That will only become truer when Dario Saric finally makes the journey across the pond and joins the roster at some point in the potentially distant future.
But the Sixers have nothing to lose and have already proved willing to take chances on draft busts. For Bennett, playing time would be hard to come by at first, though showing improvement during practice and potential in the NBA Developmental League could eventually lead to a prolonged opportunity.
And, as Bret Stuter astutely noted for the Sixer Sense, this organization just seems to be a fit:
"Bennett improved his conditioning and addressed both his sleeping and vision issues and literally became a different player from a physical standpoint. But Bennett suffered a sprained ankle the following season. But he's got huge upside, and that tends to be the magical phrase for an NBA prospect to catch the eye of general manager Sam Hinkie. And rightfully so, as the team has hired on leading experts in sports medicine as well as basketball analytics. If ever a team is set up to rehab a player with untapped NBA talent, the Philadelphia 76ers are that team.
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Rest assured that Bennett has plenty of that untapped talent. He's shown that throughout this offseason during his time with the Canadian national team, even if no one knows whether he can continue plugging into it during the upcoming NBA calendar.
1. Toronto Raptors
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It's impossible to find a more mutually beneficial landing spot for Bennett than the Toronto Raptors.
First, the obvious: Nothing could boost Bennett's confidence levels like playing in front of a hometown crowd. The support he'd receive north of the border would be tremendous, especially considering he was born in Toronto and initially went to high school at Harold M. Brathwaite Secondary School in Brampton—a smaller city in the Greater Toronto Area.
It also helps that he's spent this offseason playing quality ball for Team Canada at the Pan-Am Games. Per Eric Koreen of the National Post, head coach Jay Triano has shared some rather kind words about the forward's development:
"I think Anthony Bennett's summer has been absolutely fantastic for us. He's engaged in everything that we do on the floor, off the floor, rebounding. We've asked him to rebound, and he's done it on a continuous basis. He runs the floor on a continuous basis. He provides help on the defensive end. He understands our defensive system.
We told him earlier this summer, if you do...things (other than focus on scoring), people are going to understand he’s got a lot of other skills: His ability to pass the basketball, his ability to get teammates open. He's had a great summer, from the Pan Am Games right through to this tournament.
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Now, couple that with a glaring hole at power forward.
Patrick Patterson is a decent starter at the 4, but Toronto is not going to make it through the Eastern Conference—yes, even though it's the Association's weaker half—with Luis Scola serving as the lone natural replacement coming off the pine.
The Raptors only have 14 guaranteed contracts on the books right now; using the 15th and final one to land a high-upside frontcourt player makes sense.
In fact, it makes sense for all parties involved.
All stats, unless otherwise indicated, come from Basketball-Reference.com.
Adam Fromal covers the NBA for Bleacher Report. Follow him on Twitter:@fromal09.
