Former Iowa men’s basketball players Luka Garza, Joe Wieskamp sign new NBA contracts

Garza signed with the Minnesota Timberwolves, and Wieskamp will return to the San Antonio Spurs in 2022-23.

Jul+7%2C+2022%3B+Las+Vegas%2C+NV%2C+USA%3B+Portland+Trail+Blazers+center+Luka+Garza+%2840%29+shoots+between+Detroit+Pistons+center+Isaiah+Stewart+%2828%29+and+Detroit+Pistons+forward+Braxton+Key+%288%29+during+an+NBA+Summer+League+game+at+T%26M.+Mandatory+Credit%3A+Stephen+R.+Sylvanie-USA+TODAY+Sports

Stephen R. Sylvanie-USA TODAY Sports

Jul 7, 2022; Las Vegas, NV, USA; Portland Trail Blazers center Luka Garza (40) shoots between Detroit Pistons center Isaiah Stewart (28) and Detroit Pistons forward Braxton Key (8) during an NBA Summer League game at T&M. Mandatory Credit: Stephen R. Sylvanie-USA TODAY Sports

Chloe Peterson, Sports Editor


Former Hawkeye men’s basketball center Luka Garza signed with the Minnesota Timberwolves on Tuesday.

Garza is on his third team going into his second year in the league. After playing for the Hawkeyes from 2017-21, he was drafted by the Detroit Pistons with the 52nd pick in the 2021 NBA Draft.

 

Garza split time between the Pistons and their G League affiliate, the Motor City Cruise, in 2021. He played 32 games with five starts for the Pistons and started 16 games for the Cruise.

But Garza had to find a new team following the 2021 season, as Detroit declined his second-year contract option in June. Garza played for the Portland Trail Blazers in the Summer League in Las Vegas, averaging 6.5 points per game in four contests.

The Timberwolves did not release the specifics of Garza’s contract for 2022-23, so he could see time with Minnesota’s G League affiliate: the Iowa Wolves, based in Des Moines.

Former Iowa guard/forward Joe Wieskamp also re-signed with the San Antiono Spurs on Monday with a two-year, $4.4 million contract.

Wieskamp was drafted by the Spurs with the 41st pick in the 2021 NBA Draft. Wieskamp originally signed a two-way contract in 2021 and played 29 games with the Austin Spurs, San Antonio’s G League affiliate.

Now, Wieskamp is on a full NBA contract. In 2021, he averaged 2.1 points in 7.1 minutes per game in the NBA.