Professional NBA 2K League player Timothy “oLARRY” Anselimo will continue his pro gaming career after being shot in the chest, hip and hand — a potentially career-ending injury — during the deadly mass shooting at a “Madden NFL 19” tournament in Jacksonville, Florida, on Aug. 26.
Anselimo was notified on Wednesday that he was drafted by T-Wolves Gaming, the esports affiliate of the Minnesota Timberwolves, in the NBA 2K League expansion draft. According to reports, Anselimo, a native of Tampa, Florida, will be traded to the Cleveland Cavaliers‘ Cavs Legion GC on Thursday.
Throughout the summer of 2018, Anselimo competed on Bucks Gaming, the affiliate of the Milwaukee Bucks, in the inaugural season of the NBA 2K League. The Bucks notified Anselimo that they would not pick up his second-year option on Sept. 4, after the shooting, leaving the fate of his esports career in the balance.
Three people were killed in the Aug. 26 shooting that took place during a Madden NFL 19 Classic qualifier in a gaming bar at Chicago Pizza in Jacksonville Landing. Anselimo, 25, was among 11 injured.
Anselimo sustained the three gunshot wounds, which left his thumb detached from his hand, and he underwent two different surgeries on the hand, on Aug. 27 and 29, at University of Florida Health Jacksonville hospital. Anselimo told ESPN earlier this month that his physical therapist anticipates he will have 90 percent function in his hand by December.
Anselimo attended the tournament to compete in the Madden series tournament with his friends, including Taylor “SpotMePlzzz” Robertson, who was killed during the shooting.
On Aug. 26, David Katz, an elite-level Madden player known as “Bread,” left Chicago Pizza following a loss in the Madden tournament and reentered the building carrying two handguns. Katz opened fire in the GLHF Gaming Bar using a 9mm handgun, killing Robertson and Elijah “Trueboy” Clayton and shooting another nine people, including Anselimo. Two others sustained wounds from the frenzy of trying to escape the room. Police said Katz died of a self-inflicted gunshot wound.
Throughout the last month, Anselimo has documented the early stages of his recovery on Twitter, including him competing in NBA 2K19, which released on Sept. 7.
The NBA 2K League has not announced a date for the launch of its 2019 season. However, it is anticipated that the league will kick off sometime in the late spring; the league started in May for the 2018 season, shortly before the conclusion of the 2018 NBA playoffs.