SALT LAKE CITY — TJ Warren made a promise to himself as he worked to get back on an NBA roster this season: He wouldn’t get on a plane again until it was a team plane.
No vacation requiring a plane trip, just keep working at his home in Raleigh, North Carolina, to find a way home.
“It felt like a small deal to me,” Warren said. “I won’t get on a plane unless it’s a team plane.”
So when the wolves I wanted him to sign a 10 day contractWarren packed up his car (with his father) and drove from Raleigh to Minneapolis in a trip that would take about 19 hours, according to Google Maps, if done in one go — all while obeying speed limits.
Then he boarded a team plane as the Wolves embarked on a six-game road trip through Indiana, Cleveland, Los Angeles and now Utah.
Warren has barely fulfilled his role as a backup as his 10-day contract comes to an end, and perhaps a one-season deal awaits him after that given he’s already found a role with the Wolves. He entered the rotation in his first game against the Pacers and didn’t leave. He’s averaged 4.8 points and 16 minutes in the four games he’s played since joining the team.
Even Warren can’t believe how quickly this all happened.
“I’m not going to lie, I’m jumping right into it, it’s crazy,” Warren said. “Every time I’m there, it’s like I’m just at home and now I’m on TNT. … I was at home on my couch, on the computer playing video games and now I’m traveling. It’s like, I love it. I love it man.”
Warren, 30, was the 14th pick in the 2014 NBA draft out of North Carolina and spent the first five seasons of his career with the Suns.
He had several productive years for the Suns, then headed to Indiana, where he averaged a career-high 19.8 points per game during the 2019-20 season. He became a bit of a legend in the “bubble” portion of the schedule that year when COVID-19 forced games to be played in isolation in Florida. That’s when he scored 53 in a game against the Pacers. But the injury hit Warren in a big way. He underwent multiple foot surgeries to repair stress fractures in his left foot, which caused him to miss the entire 2021-22 season.
He returned last season to play 42 games with the Nets and Suns.
“It’s been a crazy journey since the bubble,” Warren said. “I’m grateful and I’ve accepted all the adversity, the ups and downs. I feel like that’s life, going through different situations and different obstacles and being able to overcome them and it’s definitely an honor to continue to play and perform at the highest level while contributing at the highest level.”
The Wolves leaned on him to contribute after Karl-Anthony Towns went out with a torn left meniscus that required surgery this week. The Wolves need all the scoring power they can get at this point in the season, and Warren seems like a natural fit for how they want to play.
“Everyone I played with made the game so easy, and the coaching staff definitely made it easier for me, too,” Warren said. “It’s just about knowing how to play and compete and contribute to winning, and I will be myself when I feel comfortable.”
Who knows what will happen next in Warren’s NBA career. He’s just trying to enjoy the journey, whether it’s a car or a plane.
“It’s been a crazy 10 years, looking back,” Warren said. “It’s been a crazy ride, man, but I wouldn’t trade this trip for anything else.”
