Tip-Off: 7 PM CT
Location: Paycom Center (Oklahoma City, Oklahoma)
Television: Bally Sports Oklahoma
Radio: WWLS 98.1FM OKC The Sports Animal
Twitter: Follow @ZacharyLowNBA for live-tweets and discussion during the game
The Oklahoma City Thunder’s injury list is as long as ever, but the Thunder still managed to pick up a 119-107 win over the Denver Nuggets on Wednesday. The Nuggets are a formidable team, so the win was impressive for OKC, but tonight’s matchup with the Minnesota Timberwolves might be prove to be much more difficult.
The Wolves are 7th in the Western Conference standings right now, just 2.5 games behind the Nuggets, and for the first time since 2018, Minnesota is on the brink of making the playoffs. This would be just the second appearance in the last 18 years, and with the young squad that the Wolves have put together, who knows how far they might be able to make it.
Minnesota is a dangerous matchup for OKC, particularly because of Karl-Anthony Towns. Towns is a versatile big man that has given the Thunder trouble for years, and with the limited roster that OKC has, I could see this one getting out of hand. Still, the Thunder is a gritty team, and Shai Gilgeous-Alexander has been on a tear since returning from a sprained ankle, so perhaps Thunder fans could be treated to another exciting evening of basketball.
Projected Starters
Thunder
- PG: Shai Gilgeous-Alexander
- SG: Tre Mann
- SF: Aleksej Pokusevski
- PF: Darius Bazley
- C: Isaiah Roby
Timberwolves
- PG: Patrick Beverley
- SG: D’Angelo Russell
- SF: Jaden McDaniels
- PF: Jarred Vanderbilt
- C: Karl-Anthony Towns
Thunder
- Luguentz Dort is OUT (strained left shoulder).
- Derrick Favors is OUT (lower back soreness).
- Josh Giddey is OUT (right hip soreness).
- Ty Jerome is OUT (left hip soreness).
- Mike Muscala is OUT (right ankle soreness).
- Jeremiah Robinson-Earl is OUT (third metatarsal fracture in right foot).
- Aaron Wiggins is OUT (sprained right ankle).
- Kenrich Williams is OUT (sprained right knee).
Timberwolves
- Leandro Bolmaro is OUT (G League — on assignment).
- Anthony Edwards is OUT (left patellar tendinopathy)
- Nathan Knight is OUT (G League — Two-Way).
- Jarred Vanderbilt is QUESTIONABLE (left quad contusion).
- McKinley Wright IV is OUT (left UCL injury)
Head-to-Head
- Since arriving in Oklahoma City in 2008, the Thunder is 36-16 against the Timberwolves (18-7 at home, 17-9 on the road).
- Since arriving in Oklahoma City in 2008, the Thunder has won the 4-game regular season series against the Timberwolves 9 times, lost it twice, and tied it twice.
- The Thunder went 2-1 (1-1 at home, 1-0 on the road) against the Timberwolves last season.
- The Thunder is 0-2 against the Timberwolves so far this season (0-1 at home, 0-1 on the road).