Still just 26 and seven seasons into his NBA career, veteran guard Lance Stephenson seeks a place to play and the Timberwolves need a wing player who can absorb missing minutes now that starting shooting guard Zach LaVine's season is over because of an injured knee.
After Tuesday's practice, Timberwolves coach Tom Thibodeau called Stephenson "one of the guys we're strongly considering" to provide help on the wing for a team that has started veteran Brandon Rush at shooting guard in the two games since LaVine's injury Friday at Detroit.
Stephenson agreed to terms with the team on Wednesday morning.
Thibodeau also played point guards Ricky Rubio and Tyus Jones together the entire fourth quarter in Monday's 115-113 home loss to Miami while rookie Kris Dunn remains out (hand).
A pivotal player on the Indiana team that pushed LeBron James and mighty Miami to a seventh game in the 2013 Eastern Conference finals, Stephenson has played for five NBA teams, including three in the past year. He played six games with New Orleans to start this season, but was waived in mid-November two days after he sustained a groin injury.
Thibodeau and General Manager Scott Layden considered signing Stephenson last summer. Thibodeau knows him well from when he coached Chicago and Stephenson played a provocative role on Pacers teams that reached consecutive Eastern Conference finals.
"He has shown he has been a very good player in this league," Thibodeau said.
Stephenson made a name for himself before he ever became a regular rotation player. As a relative unknown, he flashed a choke gesture from the bench toward LeBron James after James missed a free throw during the 2012 playoffs. The next season, he played himself to prominence when the two teams met again in the playoffs. The teams met a third consecutive year in the 2014 playoffs, when Stephenson famously blew in James' ear in an attempt to unnerve the game's greatest player.