The Timberwolves' NEXT MOVE Was Just Revealed...

On Wednesday, the Minnesota Timberwolves filled their last open two-way spot with a big man who finished second in the country for the Wooden Award just 19 months ago. The only player who actually got more votes, wait for it, was actually Cooper Flagg. And since July, three different NBA teams have let him go. One traded him away for cap space, one cut him in September, and one cut him days before the opening night. His name is Johnny Broom. And get this, in January, this same player put up 50 points and 17 rebounds in one, that's right, just one G League game. So you might be wondering, how does a player like this actually end up unsigned in November? And I guess the bigger question is, is this the missing big man the Minnesota Timberwolves have been looking for? Let's start with this week, because Brougham wasn't even the player that the Minnesota Timberwolves actually wanted to sign. On November 3rd, the two-way deal was reported as going to no-chard Omer. A day later, Omer changed his mind, which is shocking, and decided to go to Cleveland instead. At least, this was according to Michael Scotto. So the Wolves went back to their list, and on Wednesday, Scotto reported that Broom had agreed to the deal. Minnesota had a two-way spot sitting empty, so nobody had to be waived to make room for him. For Broom, it ends. Quite frankly, the strangest stretch a recent All-American could have. On July 28th, Philadelphia traded him and his second-round pick to the Clippers to just clear the room to sign Contavious Caldwell-Pope. His salaries for the first two seasons after this one weren't guaranteed, which made him the easiest player on the books to move. The Clippers had 16 players on guaranteed money. Broom had the least guaranteed money of them all. On September 24th, they went ahead and waived him. Then Milwaukee signed him to a training camp deal 12 days later on October 6th. On October 17th, with the season days away, the Bucks waived him too. He ended up playing in two games for the Bucks G League team in Wisconsin, and then Minnesota called. Broom is 24 years old, and Minnesota is already his fourth NBA team. So let's be clear, both the Sixers and the Clippers did not move on from him because of performance. It was clearly a money issue. And Milwaukee only had him for 11 days of camp. So no NBA team has really seen what a healthy room looks like actually against real competition. So I guess that's how a first-team All-American is still out there this late in the fall. And to see why the Wolves actually wanted him in the first place, you actually have to go back and look at some of his tape from his days at Auburn. So before we get to Auburn, this video is brought to you by Kelshi. Kelshi is a prediction market where you trade yes or no on what happens next. Of course, sports is included. So if you've got a feeling about the Wolves team without Ant right now, Kalshi is where you can back it up. Check out Kalshi today. Remember to check out the link in the description and pin comment, code DIGESTNBA. Now back to Broom and where this story, quite frankly, really starts. Broom didn't start at a big program. He began at Moorhead State as a freshman. He put up 13.8 points and nine rebounds a game. As a sophomore, he blocked 3.9 shots a game. And after that season, he went ahead and made the big move to Auburn. There, his scoring went up every single year. 14.2, then 16.5, then 18.6 points per game. In his second year at Auburn, he was a third-team All-American. In his third and last year at Auburn, he added 10.8 rebounds a game and made the consensus first team. He also won the AP's SEC Player of the Year, only the third Auburn player to actually ever walk away with that award. Of course, the first name on that list is Charles Barkley. Chris Porter won it in 1999, and then nobody at Auburn won it again for 26 years until Broome. That season, Auburn went 32-6 and made the national semifinals before Florida knocked him out. By the time he was done, he had put together an outstanding collegiate career with close Close to 2,700 points. Over 1,500 rebounds and 419 block shots across 168 college games. On draft night, Cooper flag went first and 34 players went off the board before anybody called. So look, a big man that can't actually stretch the floor, doesn't actually play above the rim, basically has to win in every other category. So look, Philadelphia ended up taking the bet anyway, and at least for one night in January, it totally looked like a steal. In the NBA, Broom barely got off the bench as a rookie. He played in 11 games for the 76ers and averaged 0.9 points. So down in the G League with the Delaware Bluecoats, he actually looked like a completely different player. In January against the College Park Skyhawks, what a great name that is, he scored 50 points in a 155-140 win. He had 24 of them by halftime and 15 more in the third quarter. He made 18 of 34 shots from the field, and the big man scout said, couldn't shoot when... Five for seven from three. He grabbed 17 rebounds and nine of those actually came on the offensive glass. He played 38 minutes and still handed out five assists. The same passing the scouts had talked about. It was the best game of his life, and about a month after that, well, everything stopped. In late February, he had surgery to repair a torn meniscus in his right knee. The swelling came back when his workload ultimately went up, so his return was actually pretty slow. For a big man whose whole game lives in the paint, that knee, quite frankly, is everything. By the end of this season, he was doing full court work before games once again. He did get on the floor in the playoffs against the Knicks and actually ended up scoring seven points in three minutes of garbage time. Then came Summer League in beautiful Las Vegas, where he had 19 points and 13 rebounds against Detroit. In the next game, he went for 23 and 11 against Indiana in an overtime summer league game. The catch was the jumper because across those two games, he went two for 12 from three. So ultimately, his knee did hold up. Of course, he still needs to work on his jump shot. But at the end of the day, Philadelphia needed the money, which was why in November, the Minnesota Timberwolves were able to pick him up. So let's take a quick look at the current Wolves roster. Rudy Gobert is the only player on a standard contract listed at center. And yeah. Rudy is 34 years old. He's played in 11 of their 12 games and is pulling down 11.5 rebounds a night. The one game he missed was in San Antonio. And of course, the Wolves lost by 10. Johan Berenge had to play 34 minutes that night. About double his usual 17, Barron Jay, as you all know, is only 20. And of course, there's Rocco Zekarski, the 7'3 center, is 22, and is also on a two-way deal. Last May, the Spurs knocked this team out of the playoffs in six games, and the Wolves haven't won a playoff game since May 10th. This season, they're 9-3, even with Edwards out since his knee surgery on October 29. So, if you are new to the Timberwolves Digest, please go ahead and subscribe, and of course, go ahead and comment. Love to get all of your comments, North America. Now, in terms of Johnny Broome, and what do I believe he'll actually bring to this team, Basically, an emergency situation, if for some reason Gobert were to go down for an extended period of time, this is the kind of player that could actually jump in and provide real minutes in the National Basketball Association. Now, I don't want to kid anybody out there, he is not Gobert, but he certainly could grab between 7 and 10 rebounds a night for the Minnesota Timberwolves. He does seem to have a knack when it comes to blocking shots. All right. That is all I have for you today on the Johnny Broome story. Please go ahead and drop in your comments, North America. Our Timberwolves are playing well. I want to know what your thoughts and opinions are. Thanks so much for tuning into the Timberwolves Digest, as always. North America, I'm Dave DeBob wishing you all a tremendous rest of your sports viewing day.