The Minnesota Timberwolves have claimed guard Tristen Newton off waivers. In a related move, the Timberwolves have waived two-way guard Daishen Nix.
Newton, 6-5, has appeared in five games with the Indiana Pacers this season. He has also spent time with the Indiana Mad Ants of the NBA G League where in 10 games this year, he averaged 17.0 points on 42.4% shooting, including 41.4% from deep, 6.8 rebounds, 5.9 assists and 1.3 steals in 36.1 minutes per game.
The El Paso, Texas native played five years collegiately between Eastern Carolina University and the University of Connecticut, including winning two NCAA championships at UConn. In his final season at Connecticut, Newton was named the 2024 NCAA Final Four Most Outstanding Player, 2024 Associated Press BIG EAST Player of the Year, 2024 Bob Cousy Award winner and was selected as a 2024 Consensus First Team All-American and 2024 Unanimous First Team All-BIG EAST. In five collegiate season, he averaged 12.8 points on 40.2% shooting, 5.1 rebounds and 4.9 assists in 31.6 minutes per game.
Newton was originally drafted by the Pacers with the 49th overall pick in the 2024 NBA Draft.