Tristen Newton claimed by Minnesota Timberwolves

The Pacers drafted Tristen Newton, who won back-to-back titles at UConn, at pick No. 49. Almost halfway into his rookie season, he's now moving on to Minnesota after being claimed on waivers.

Tristen Newton appeared in 14 games with the Indiana Mad Ants. (Photo: Cara Daugherty)

It didn’t take long for rookie guard Tristen Newton to figure out his next destination.

Two days after being waived by the Indiana Pacers, who drafted him with the 49th pick last June, the rookie guard out of UConn was claimed on waivers by the Minnesota Timberwolves on Friday.

To create a roster spot for Newton, the Timberwolves first waived Daishen Nix.

As I reported on New Year’s Day, this was the preference for Newton since there did not appear to be a real opportunity for minutes given that the Pacers are heavy on guards.

He now has a landing spot up in Minnesota and with an organization that is coming off a Western Conference finals appearance last season.

Notably, Newton is cousins with running back Aaron Jones, who's in his first season with the Minnesota Vikings after spending the last seven seasons within the division over in Green Bay.

Newton did make his NBA debut with the Pacers, appearing in five games earlier this season. He scored his first points on Nov. 22 in Milwaukee, then received the game ball. (Those are his only NBA points.) He’s played eight minutes in the NBA.

In 14 games playing for the Mad Ants, the G League affiliate of the Pacers, Newton averaged 16.4 points, 5.8 rebounds, and 6.7 assists per game while shooting 39.6% from distance. The Pacers signed him to a two-way contract in July after Las Vegas Summer League.

Newton spent the past two years playing for coach Dan Hurley at UConn and winning back-to-back national championships. He was named the NCAA Tournament’s Most Outstanding Player last spring. Newton and the Huskies made a second consecutive visit to the White House to be honored on Sept. 10.

Meanwhile, the Pacers officially signed RayJ Dennis to a two-way contract on Friday (Jan. 3), as I also previously reported. That fills their third and final two-way slot, joining Quenton Jackson and Enrique Freeman.