Thunder signs Antonio Anderson to 10-day contract

[Balkman32]

It’s officially official. Per a press release:

Oklahoma City Thunder Executive Vice President and General Manager Sam Presti announced that the team has signed Antonio Anderson to a 10-day contract.

Anderson, 24, is a free agent call-up from the NBA Development League’s Rio Valley Grande Vipers where he has averaged 15.5 points, 4.0 rebounds, 5.9 assists, 1.3 steals and 39.6 minutes in 32 games (32 starts). A 6-6, 215 pound guard who went undrafted out of Memphis in 2009, Anderson went to training camp with the Charlotte Bobcats. He appeared in five games, averaging 3.4 points, 1.8 assists and 1.4 rebounds in 14.2 minutes before being waived on October 22.

With his signing, Anderson becomes the 14th Gatorade Call-Up from the D-League this season. He will wear uniform #8. In order to accommodate Anderson, Oklahoma City has waived forward Matt Harpring who was acquired along with Eric Maynor in a trade with the Utah Jazz on December 22.

I think this deal was more made for practice purposes more than needing game help. With Kyle Weaver hurt and the scare of Thabo getting poked in the eye, it seems like OKC might be a little thin on the practice court. But there is also a chance I’m wrong about that. Anderson is a long, defense first shooting guard that doesn’t shoot the ball extremely well, but is very athletic and can guard three positions. He’s kind of like Thabo Lite in a way.

The good news is though, I guess Harpring can broadcast for the Jazz in peace now.

[Air Durant35]

yeah Antonio wont see any playing time but its always nice to see a D-Leaguer get called up.

[kevinbs]

He will actually be your best defender and playmaker............ He will show that in practice and be a regular before the season ends.....

[wizkid27]

He will actually be your best defender and playmaker............ He will show that in practice and be a regular before the season ends.....

Really? He'll be a better defender than Thabo? Although I hesitate to believe either of these, I would really doubt that he'll be anywhere near Thabo on D, as I consider Sefolosha one of the best in the league.

[slick_watts]

Antonio Anderson isn't as good a defender as Thabo but he definitely has tools to be good at the NBA level in that respect. He was also a good playmaker at Memphis and that skill has translated to the D-League. I'd say that he looks a lot more like Kyle Weaver as a prospect than Thabo. Built more like Thabo though.

It's an interesting signing. If they keep this guy around beyond the two 10 day contracts it probably means they don't have faith in Weaver returning for the playoff roster.

[wizkid27]

Interesting. I remember seeing the guy play just a little bit at Memphis, but not nearly enough to have any fully baked opinion of him. I would think at this point, that if we were going to sign someone it would be more of the pure point guard variety though.

[Big_Mac79]

It's an interesting signing. If they keep this guy around beyond the two 10 day contracts it probably means they don't have faith in Weaver returning for the playoff roster.

Anybody have any recent news on Weaver?

[slick_watts]

On Kyle Weaver, this is from February 18th: http://www.newsok.com/article/3440294

"Guard Kyle Weaver (shoulder surgery) is involved in team shooting drills but probably is a month away from resuming practice."

So yeah, it looks like they're hedging their bets with Weaver. You can only sign players to two 10-day contracts so by the time that's done the team should have a good idea of Weaver's immediate prognosis.

[kevinbs]

If he gets the oppurtunity he will take that job.... He is a good all around player with great defense and a triple double threat