Gawen DeAngelo "Bonzi" Wells, also known as the Bonz, (born September 20, 1976 in Muncie, Indiana) is a 6'5" shooting guard in the NBA for the Sacramento Kings.
Wells attended Muncie Central High School in Muncie, Indiana. He was selected eleventh overall by the Detroit Pistons in the 1998 NBA Draft out of Ball State University, where he averaged, 21.4 PPG, 3 SPG, and 7.3 RPG. Wells would never play for the Pistons as his draft rights were traded to the Portland Trail Blazers for the Blazers' first round pick in 1999.
In Portland Wells achieved career highs in scoring and improved on defense, and picked up what some would call an undeserved bad-boy image while sharing the role of co-captain with Rasheed Wallace. Bonzi however did have his share of on and off the court incidents. During his tenure with the Blazers, Bonzi was suspended for two games for publicly cursing at his coach after being taken out of a game. Bonzi was also fined in a separate incident for making an obscene gesture to a fan in a loss to the Philadelphia 76ers. When asked by a media reporter about the incident, he said, "I black out sometimes," and then winked and smiled at the camera. Wells was suspended one game without pay and fined $10,000 for intentionally striking and verbally abusing an official in 2000. Bonzi and teammate Erick Barkley in 2001 were cited for criminal trespass after they refused to leave the scene by order of an officer of a fight near a downtown nightclub. Bonzi was also suspended for a undisclosed reason during the 2005 playoffs.
This only went to further the team's derisive nickname, Portland Jail-Blazers. Trail Blazers management made an oath to the City of Portland to have a team of upstanding-Portlanders and drastically restructured the team. In an exchange that emphasized the urgency to release Wells, he was sent to the Memphis Grizzlies in a trade for reserve guard Wesley Person.
The unorthodox coaching methods of Hubie Brown and his strict 10-man rotation limited Wells to just under 25 minutes per game for the Grizzlies. This tactic helped them earn their first playoff appearance in franchise history. However, it did not complement Wells' power, which was reflected by his mediocre statistics.
After Brown suddenly quit his duties mid-way through the 2004-05 season, Mike Fratello took over as head coach. It appeared Wells was finally going to be given a chance pose a threat on the court. This would not come to be, highlighted by the fact that Wells played a total of 27 minutes in the Grizzlies' second playoff appearance in 2005. Citing undisclosed reasons by Fratello, he was suspended in Game 2 of the series against the powerhouse Phoenix Suns. He returned in Game 3, only to play nine minutes. Wells did not dress for the series-ending Game 4.
Prior to the start of the 2005-2006 NBA season, Wells was acquired from the Grizzlies by the Kings in a trade for point guard Bobby Jackson and center Greg Ostertag. In the early part of the season, Wells had been a rebounding force for the Kings, recording career-best numbers in rebounds, while also recording excellent assists and steals totals.
Trivia[]
- Wears a sweatband on each biceps that says "Bonz"
- Switched jersey number from 6 to 42 in 2005 after his alma mater, Ball State, retired the number
- Scored a career high 45 points against the Dallas Mavericks in Game 2 of the first round of the 2003 Playoffs
- Set the Mid-American Conference all-time career records in points (2,485) and steals (347)
- He is named after his father Gawen Wells
- Has a son (born in 1998) also named Gawen
- Was a NikeBasketball.com Baller of the Week
- Was a GQ "Top 10 Most Hated Athlete"
- Name was dropped in Ghostface Killah's song, "Biscuits"; in Trife's verse he says, "I'm from a place where chunkheads and zombies dwell/And niggaz keep they heat blazin' like Bonzi Wells."