Former Wisconsin forward Frank Kaminsky signs free-agent contract with the Atlanta Hawks
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After missing the majority of last season with a knee injury and ultimately being waived by the Phoenix Suns a year ago, Frank Kaminsky is officially back on an NBA roster for the 2022-2023 season.
On Friday, Adrian Wojnarowski of ESPN reported that the former Wisconsin Badgers great agreed to a new one-year deal with the Atlanta Hawks. According to Chris Kirschner of The Athletic, Kaminsky's new deal will pay him the veteran minimum as he enters his eighth season in the NBA.
A former first-round pick of the Charlotte Hornets, Kaminsky went No. 9 overall in the 2015 NBA Draft and has since played for both the Hornets and the Phoenix Suns.
Former Wisconsin forward Frank Kaminsky celebrates a three-point make with the Phoenix Suns.
Over his first seven years in the league, Kaminsky has averaged 9.4 points and 4.1 rebounds while playing in just over 20 minutes per game. Last season with the Phoenix Suns, he was limited to only nine games because of a knee injury that required surgery, but prior to that point was having one of the better seasons of his career as a key reserve.
With a clean bill of health, Kaminsky will look to make an immediate impact in Atlanta, where he is expecting to contribute as a power forward and center behind the starting frontcourt of John Collins and Clint Capella.
A multi-year starter in college with the Wisconsin Badgers, Frank Kaminsky is one of the most recognizable faces in the history of Wisconsin basketball. Playing under head coach Bo Ryan from 2011 to 2015, Kaminsky helped lead the Badgers to back-to-back Final Fours as an upperclassman and was a key part of the team's runner-up finish in the 2015 National Championship Game.
Frank Kaminsky had his jersey retired by Wisconsin back in February of 2018.
Mary Langenfeld-USA TODAY Sports
A two-time All-Big Ten selection, Kaminsky averaged 13.9 points and 6.3 rebounds per game as a junior, but his production improved dramatically during his senior season in Madison. Kaminsky finished his senior year averaging 18.8 points and 8.2 rebounds per game and shooting over 52% from the floor. His ability to dominate the game in the paint and 41.6% three-point percentage made him nearly unguardable as a senior, and as a result, he took consensus first-team All-American honors.
In addition to being an All-American, Kaminsky won the Big Ten Player of the Year honor in the 2014-2015 season and also won the Wooden, Naismith, and Oscar Robinson Player of the Year awards.
The 7-footer has since had his name retired inside the Kohl Center and is one of only three players with his jersey in the rafters, joining Ab Nicholas and Michael Finley.
Kaminsky is 29 years old and will turn 30 in April. He was the most recent first-round pick from Wisconsin prior to last month when Wisconsin guard Johnny Davis went tenth overall to the Washington Wizards in the 2022 NBA Draft.
Related links:
- Five Wisconsin Badgers playing in the 2022 NBA Summer League
- Wisconsin basketball offers Davion Hannah and Kai Rogers
- Wisconsin to face Wake Forest in the 2022 ACC/Big Ten Challenge
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