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Timberwolves at Thunder
Sunday, December 25th, 2016 at 7:00 p.m. at the Chesapeake Energy Arena
MATCHUP
Ho Ho Ho! Merry Christmas and Happy Holidays everyone! The Timberwolves play arguably their most important game so far this year. With the national television exposure on Christmas Day, the pressure is on for the young Wolves. Minnesota rolls into Oklahoma with a 9-20 record holding the 13th spot in the Western Conference. Oklahoma looks to counter with a 18-12 record holding the 6th spot in the Western Conference.
Projected Starters
Timberwolves:
PG: Ricky Rubio #9
SG: Zach LaVine #8
SF: Andrew Wiggins #22
PF: Gorgui Dieng #5
C: Karl-Anthony Towns #32
Thunder:
PG: Russell Westbrook #0
SG: Andre Roberson #21
SF: Jerami Grant #9
PF: Domantas Sabonis #3
C: Steven Adams #12
Injury Report
Timberwolves:
Nikola Pekovic – out/season (recurring foot pain)
Thunder:
Victor Oladipo – questionable (wrist)
Cameron Payne – questionable (foot)
Last Meeting
The Timberwolves and Thunder faced off once already this year. The Thunder walked away with an easy win. Right out of the get-go, the Thunder were on fire. They came into this game with a mission, and it was to absolutely decimate Minnesota. At one point, Oklahoma held a 26 point lead. Russell Westbrook lead the way for the Thunder with 29 points. Karl-Anthony Towns put up 33 points for the Timberwolves, but it wasn’t enough. Minnesota loses 92-112.
Noteworthy
Match-up to watch tonight: Steven Adams and Karl-Anthony Towns. Steven Adams reminds me of Pekovic in a way. He’s this really scary looking, strong guy who makes you think twice about driving it into the paint. He’s an excellent defender. Part of KAT’s game comes from bullying people in the post. It’s going to be interesting to see how both of them adjust.
Player to watch: Russell Westbrook. Now I know this an obvious person to watch, but the numbers he has been producing is incredible. I can’t remember the last person to average a triple-double every single game. He’s been snubbed of the MVP trophy the last couple of years, and now he’s really gunning for it.
Broadcast Information
TV: Fox Sports North/ESPN – Dave Benz (play-by- play), Jim Peterson (analyst)
Radio: 830 WCCO-AM – Alan Horton (play-by- play)
(All stats found on NBA.com and basketball-reference.com)
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