When Washington Wizards guard Alan Anderson sank a first-quarter jump shot Wednesday night against the Timberwolves, one man sitting courtside at Target Center stood up and fist-pumped for the opponent.

It was Dave Thorson, Anderson’s old coach at DeLaSalle High in Minneapolis. Thorson wasn’t so much cheering that single shot as he rooting about the countless times Anderson had to persevere through twists and turns in his pro career.

On Wednesday, Anderson had no detours. He scored 18 points off the bench — a total which equaled that of all five Wolves reserves — in Washington’s 104-98 win over Minnesota.

After playing at Michigan State in the early 2000s, no NBA teams drafted Anderson in 2005. That was but the first speed bump. He caught on with Charlotte and played two seasons for the Hornets. But the hard part was yet to come.

Anderson didn’t get any extended interest from NBA teams in 2007 and packed his bags for Europe. That walkabout came in his mid-20s, when he was entering the prime of his career.

Over the next four seasons, his passport was stamped to play in leagues in Italy, Russia, Croatia, Israel and Spain as well as stints in the NBA Development League.

But as the saying goes, not all those that wander are lost.

“You just have to have confidence in yourself and work ethic, man,” said Anderson, now 33. “There are a lot of guys that go overseas and never come back. I just had a different vision for myself. It’s tough. It’s tough. There were times that I didn’t think I could do it, but you just got to keep working.”

Anderson remained steadfast on his NBA dream and returned with the Toronto Raptors at age 29 in 2011. He turned a 10-day contract into a run over two seasons in Canada, followed by two years in Brooklyn before landing with the Wizards before this season.

But he was laid up for nine months with a left ankle injury that required surgery in October and cost him the first 55 games this season. His best scoring game before the 18-point outburst Wednesday, which included a game-best plus-23 rating and four three-pointers, was a nine-point showing against the Chicago Bulls in his first game back Feb. 24.

“It was good to come home and play well in front of your family and friends, but it’s more to come off a nine-month layoff from an injury,” Anderson said, his left foot resting in an ice bucket.

Wolves forward Tayshaun Prince has seen Anderson’s dedication firsthand in offseasons. The pair have worked out together in Las Vegas for at least the past seven years.

“I had the pleasure to see that year after year after year in the summer time working out with him,” Prince said. “Even with him being hurt, he was in the gym, getting shots up. Lot of spot shots, couldn’t do a lot of movement. It just shows you the resilience.”

Prince, a 14th-year veteran, knows how rare it is for a player to come back from a European exile.

“A lot of guys tend to, after a year or so, figure that the chance is not going to come back around,” Prince said. “He made it come back.”

Anderson didn’t chat with Thorson before the game but saw him cheering him on during it. “Yeah, I seen him, that’s my man,” Anderson said. “I’m going to see everybody after this.”

Before heading to Cleveland for Friday’s game, Anderson will be able to rest in his hometown for an evening and look back on where’s he’s been.