Tip-Off: 7 PM CT
Location: Chesapeake Energy Arena (Oklahoma City, Oklahoma)
Television: Fox Sports Oklahoma
Radio: WWLS 98.1FM OKC The Sports Animal
Twitter: Follow @ZacharyLowNBA for live-tweets and discussion during the game
Round 1 of a back-to-back against the Minnesota Timberwolves did not go well for the Oklahoma City Thunder, and despite a fairly full injury report, OKC had a chance to win the game. D’Angelo Russell hit a 3 for the Wolves with just a couple seconds left to seal the game for Minnesota, and that was all she wrote.
The Thunder gets a number of players back tonight, including Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, Luguentz Dort, and Theo Maledon, but several others remain out, and a few new ones, including Al Horford (rest). Playing in a back-to-back is tough in general, but when it’s the same team, it allows both sides to make necessary adjustments.
The Timberwolves will be without D’Angelo Russell, so that gives Shai Gilgeous-Alexander an opportunity for a strong return as he’ll likely be matched up against veteran Ricky Rubio. Win or lose, though, the focus remains the same.
“These games all have lessons,” said Thunder head coach Mark Daigneault, “and they all have opportunities in them.”
As long as the young guys are continuing to develop and grow as a team, I wouldn’t worry too much about the final score.
Projected Starters
Thunder
- PG: Shai Gilgeous-Alexander
- SG: Theo Maledon
- SF: Luguentz Dort
- PF: Hamidou Diallo
- C: Darius Bazley
Timberwolves
- PG: Ricky Rubio
- SG: Malik Beasley
- SF: Jarred Vanderbilt
- PF: Anthony Edwards
- C: Naz Reid
Injuries
Thunder
- Trevor Ariza is OUT (not with team).
- Darius Bazley is QUESTIONABLE (lower back soreness).
- Moses Brown is OUT (G League; two-way).
- Luguentz Dort is OUT (left knee soreness).
- Shai Gilgeous-Alexander is OUT (sprained left knee).
- Josh Hall is OUT (G League; two-way).
- George Hill is OUT (right thumb surgery).
- Al Horford is OUT (rest).
- Ty Jerome is OUT (G League; two-way).
- Aleksej Pokusevski (G League; two-way).
- Isaiah Roby is OUT (right foot soreness).
Timberwolves
- Jarrett Culver is OUT (sprained left ankle).
- Ashton Hagans is OUT (G League; two-way).
- Juancho Hernangomez is QUESTIONABLE (post health & safety protocol reconditioning).
- Naz Reid is PROBABLE (sprained right wrist).
- D’Angelo Russell is DOUBTFUL (right quad soreness).
- Karl-Anthony Towns is OUT (health and safety protocols).
Head-to-Head
- Since arriving in Oklahoma City in 2008, the Thunder is 33-14 against the Timberwolves (17-6 at home, 15-9 on the road).
- Since arriving in Oklahoma City in 2008, the Thunder has won the 4-game regular season series against the Timberwolves 8 times, lost it twice, and tied it twice.
- The Thunder is 0-1 (0-1 at home, 0-0 on the road) against the Timberwolves so far this season.