The Minnesota Timberwolves announced late Saturday night that they have assigned rookie point guard Tyus Jones to the NBA Development League. He will play for the Idaho Stampede, who are the affiliate of the Utah Jazz. The move is made through the Flexible Assignment rule, which allows the Timberwolves to maintain control over Jones, and recall him when they want.
Jones who is a Minnesota native, was originally drafted by the Cleveland Cavaliers, but was traded to Minnesota in a draft-day trade. So far this season, Jones has played just 14 minutes in two games.
“Going to Idaho will allow Tyus to get some game experience at the professional level,” Wolves general manager Milt Newton said in a statement. “With our depth at point guard, we haven’t been able to get Tyus the playing time that he needs. Tyus has a great future in the NBA and this assignment will help the development of his game.”
Jones was a high school star in Minnesota, as he led his team to the 2013 state championship while being named Player Of The Year for three straight years. He spent last year at Duke University, where he averaged 11.8 points, 5.6 assists, and 3.5 rebounds while helping the Blue Devils win the national championship, where he scored 23 points.
The flexible assignment rule allows NBA teams who do not have a D-League affiliate to assign players to the D-League, who will then assign the player to a team. While the players are in the league, the NBA team that assigned them maintains control over them.
The Stampede are 3-7 on the season, which puts them in fourth place in the Pacific Division of the Western Conference. Their next game is Monday when they travel to Texas to play the Rio Grande Valley Vipers.