Ben Woodside, the 2009 Summit League Player of the Year, is currently in Las Vegas, NV participating in the NBA's Summer League with the Minnesota Timberwolves. Although the T-Wolves drafted a slew of point guards a few weeks back, the only one who is participating on the Summer League team is Jonny Flynn (Ricky Rubio's fate is unknown and Ty Lawson was shipped to Denver). I had presumed this would be good for Woody, but after the first game it became apparent that it was not, at least at that moment.
In the Wolves first game, the former Bison did not get a single minute of playing time, most likely because it was Flynn's first shot to shine. Things started looking up, however, yesterday when Ben finally got some PT. In just over eight minutes, he went 0-1 from the field, 1-2 from the line, had 1 assist and 1 steal, and committed no turnovers. Not exactly a spectacular line for a guy who needs to make the most of all of his playing opportunities.
It is clear that Woodside will need to show a lot more in the coming games if he's to get the slightest sniff of a roster spot either with an Association or D-League team. Anyone who followed the Summit League last year knows that Ben has the skills to compete with NBA prospects (Sherron Collins anyone?), but the common complaint against him is his lack of size and strength. Whatever the result, it's great to see Ben getting the chance to represent himself, his alma mater, and his conference on such a level.
Minnesota has three Summer League games remaining:
Friday, July 17 at 8:00pm EST vs. Washington
Saturday, July 18 at 6:30pm EST vs. New Orleans
Sunday, July 19 at 6:00pm EST vs Chicago
Box scores and recaps can be read here.
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