Wolves Expressed Interest In Donte DiVincenzo In Free Agency, Now Acquiring Him

The Timberwolves are landing guard Donte DiVincenzo as part of the Karl-Anthony Towns trade with the Knicks, and that’s one part of this deal that may not be an absolute stunner.

After all, the Timberwolves had an interest in DiVincenzo when he hit free agency last summer, per Tim Bontemps of ESPN. Along with DiVincenzo, Minnesota is acquiring power forward Julius Randle and a first-round pick (via the Pistons) from New York.

“(DiVincenzo’s) 3-point shooting, in particular, will be a welcome addition for the Wolves, particularly as they lose one of the best shooting big men in the league in Towns in this deal,” Bontemps wrote.

But it was no less than Warriors star Steph Curry who advised DiVencenzo to re-sign with the Knicks. Curry and DiVincenzo, of course, were once teammates with Golden State. So DiVencenzo heeded his former teammate’s advice and signed a four-year, $46 million contract with New York.

“Ultimately, he said it,” DiVincenzo said of Curry. “It was on my mind. You know, I’m a grown man. I make my own decisions, but to have somebody of that stature to almost voice the opinion that I’m thinking — it makes you feel good about the decision you’re making, rather than if he says something way out of left field and you kind of start to question things. … He reinforced what I was thinking about New York.”

Now, though, DiVencenzo is headed to the Timberwolves, after all.

DiVincenzo, 27, is 6-foot-4 and averaged a career-high 15.5 points last season, missing just one game.