Greg Stiemsma to Minnesota

Center Greg Stiemsma has signed with the Minnesota Timberwolves.

The deal was done Thursday.

The 26-year-old Stiemsma was named the 2010 NBA Development League Defensive Player of the Year after he averaged 9.1 points, 7.3 rebounds and a league-leading 3.7 blocks per game for the Sioux Falls Sky Force. That's when he says he made the most strides in his professional career and gained the necessary confidence to believe he could stay in the NBA.

After playing the following season in Turkey, Stiemsma joined the Boston Celtics last season and appeared in 55 games, averaging 2.9 points, 3.2 rebounds, 1.5 blocks and 13.9 minutes.

He says he would've liked to have returned to Boston but that Minnesota was "not a hard sell" given the proximity to his Wisconsin home.