The newest member of the Minnesota Timberwolves has a beard that might make Houston Rockets star James Harden blush.
According to Shams Charania of RealGM, the Wolves are finalizing a contract agreement with Miroslav Raduljica. The seven-footer is in the process of a buyout settlement with Shandong of the Chinese Basketball League.
Raduljica played 48 games with the Milwaukee Bucks as a rookie last season. He was traded to the Clippers and waived before the start of this season.
Former Clipper Miroslav Raduljica ( for 3 days ) is averaging 18.3 PPG, 9.1 RPG, 1.7 APG, 1.3 SPG in 14 games for the Shandong Flaming Bulls
— kyle (@ClipperKyle) December 25, 2014
The 26-year-old center will provide depth behind Wolves starting center Gorgui Dieng, who has taken over the starting role in the absence of an injured Nikola Pekovic. According to Pro Basketball Talk, Raduljica played well in limited minutes with the Bucks, averaging 3.8 points and 2.3 rebounds per game. He shot 54 percent from the field and 81.8 percent at the free-throw line.
Raduljica averaged 13 points per game while helping lead Serbia’s national team to the 2014 FIBA World Cup championship game, where they lost to the United States. After the game, Radulica offered up a hilarious quote, according to Pro Basketball Talk.
“We lost the final but still my beard is better than James Harden‘s.”
As far as we know, Raduljica hasn’t done a “beard guru” commercial like Harden has.
Pekovic, via CBS Sports, reportedly ran on a treadmill at 80 percent during the weekend. A wrist injury and an aggravated ankle injury have limited him to nine games this season.
Rubio injury update
Point guard Ricky Rubio told the Star Tribune on Saturday that his recovery from a severely sprained ankle is still not complete. He’s able to run, but stopping quickly and changing directions remains difficult.
“When you’re hurt, you know you’re back when you can run and stop and change directions,” Wolves head coach Flip Saunders said. “He’s not there yet.”
A specific timetable for his return has not been made.
