MINNEAPOLIS, Feb. 28 -- Felipe Lopez, who was released last week by the lowly Washington Wizards, Wednesday signed a contract with the playoff-contending Minnesota Timberwolves for the remainder of the season.
Lopez averaged 8.1 points, 3.4 rebounds and 1.6 assists in 47 games for the Wizards, with whom he began the season in the starting lineup.
Inexplicably, his playing time diminished under new Wizards Coach Leonard Hamilton as the season wore on.
Ironically, the free agent guard scored a career-high 26 points Jan. 2 against the Timberwolves. He was released after the Wizards received five players in an eight-player trade with Dallas, a deal in Washington shipped their highest-paid player, forward Juwan Howard, to the Mavericks.
Lopez, a native of the Dominican Republic who played collegiately at St. Johns, was a first-round draft pick of the San Antonio Spurs in 1998. He quickly was traded to Vancouver and played two seasons for the Grizzlies, averaging 6.5 points a game.
