National Basketball Association

Timberwolves vs. Thunder: Trying to stop Russ...

Published Jun. 30, 2017 6:28 p.m. ET

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Mar 11, 2016; Oklahoma City, OK, USA; Minnesota Timberwolves guard Ricky Rubio (9) attempts to steal the ball from Oklahoma City Thunder guard Russell Westbrook (0) during the fourth quarter at Chesapeake Energy Arena. Mandatory Credit: Mark D. Smith-USA TODAY Sports

The Timberwolves look to improve upon their 1-3 record in Saturday’s big game against dthe ivision rival Oklahoma City Thunder.

The Wolves head into this game with just a 1-3 record on the season. All three losses have centered around a large, early lead overcome by the opponent in the second half, and largely the the third quarter.

In the most recent game, against the Denver Nuggets, the Wolves were winning after the first quarter, 37-25. In the previous loss, against the Sacramento Kings, the Wolves were winning 65-54 at halftime. And in the season opener, the Wolves were beating the Grizzlies 59-50 at halftime.

All of these games were losses in the end.

The immaturity of the Wolves’ roster is shown when games are lost in such fashion. They should be looking to get a few statement wins to show that they are playoff ready, and this game against the Thunder is the perfect opportunity.

The Thunder have been off to a good start with a record of 4-1. That one loss of course, was to the Golden State Warriors.

Mar 11, 2016; Oklahoma City, OK, USA; Minnesota Timberwolves center Karl-Anthony Towns (32) reacts after a play against the Oklahoma City Thunder during the fourth quarter at Chesapeake Energy Arena. Mandatory Credit: Mark D. Smith-USA TODAY Sports

Minnesota Timberwolves Preview

Record: 1-3 (Home 1-0, Road 0-3)

Starting Lineup

PG – Kris Dunn (6.3 PPG, 5 APG, 2.3 SPG)

SG – Zach LaVine (21.3 PPG, 4.8 RPG, 2.5 APG)

SF – Andrew Wiggins (24.0 PPG, 3.5 RPG, 1.3 APG)

PF – Gorgui Dieng (11.3 PPG, 9.3 RPG, 1.5 BPG)

C – Karl Anthony-Towns (19.8 PPG, 8.5 RPG, 3.8 APG)

Key Reserves

A great deal of the Wolves’ early problems this season have been weak offense coming from the bench. In the last game against the Nuggets, Nemanja Bjelica stepped up, however, putting up14 points and eight rebounds in 22 minutes of play.

Shabazz Muhammad has the talent to be a solid offensive presence but in the last four games has only averaged 6.0 points on 14 minutes per game. Shabazz and Brandon Rush need to perform well for this team to win. Bench players have to be able to relieve starters effectively, and it simply hasn’t been consistent to this point.

Mar 11, 2016; Oklahoma City, OK, USA; Oklahoma City Thunder guard Russell Westbrook (0) drives to the basket in front of Minnesota Timberwolves guard Ricky Rubio (9) during the fourth quarter at Chesapeake Energy Arena. Mandatory Credit: Mark D. Smith-USA TODAY Sports

Oklahoma City Thunder Preview

Record: 4-1 (Home 2-0, Away 2-1)

Starting Lineup

PG – Russell Westbrook (34.2 PPG, 10.0 APG, 9.6 RPG)

SG – Andre Roberson (4.4 PPG, 6.0 RPG, 1.8 SPG)

SF – Victor Oladipo (16.2 PPG, 3.8 RPG, 1.6 APG)

PF – Domantas Sabonis (6.4 PPG, 3.2 RPG, 0.6 SPG)

C – Steven Adams (10.4 PPG, 8.4 RPG, 2.0 SPG)

Key Reserves

The Thunder bench is built around a core of young players — young players who have the ability to score quickly. Expect for the Thunder bench to either score nothing or provide a hefty amount of points on any given night.

The big man, Enes Kanter, can provide a great backup for Steven Adams. Kanter has the ability to score 15+ off the bench. Anthony Marrow and Kyle Singler are long-range shooters that can perform from time to time for the Thunder. New to the program is Jerami Grant, a forward that and score and rebound a little bit.

The Thunder bench is not all that impressive, but certainly isn’t one to forget about. Since Westbrook will be carrying the team this season, anyone on the Thunder can step up and be that next guy on offense.

Jan 15, 2016; Oklahoma City, OK, USA; Minnesota Timberwolves center Karl-Anthony Towns (32) drives to the basket against Oklahoma City Thunder center Steven Adams (12) during the first quarter at Chesapeake Energy Arena. Mandatory Credit: Mark D. Smith-USA TODAY Sports

Three Things to Watch

1. How Kris Dunn handles himself against Russell Westbrook. Many Wolves fans (and NBA fans in general) are excited to see how Kris Dunn plays this season. There are high hopes for the rookie, and some Timberwolves fans even see him as the point guard of the future.

Russell Westbrook is averaging nearly a triple-double on the season. Dunn might not be guarding Westbrook the whole game, but a few rotations could easily put Dunn in a one-on-one situation with Russ.

2. Victor Oladipo, Victor Oladipo, Victor Oladipo. This is the guy that is supposed to take the scoring load that the Thunder will miss in Kevin Durant. There are high hopes for Oladipo, and rightfully so. He is a talented scorer, athletic, and can play defense well.

More from Dunking with Wolves

With Kevin Durant gone, Russ has to get his 10 assists per game from someone. While Oladipo won’t be able to replace KD, watch how he performs while trying to fill-in for some of the missing production.

3. Towns and Adams in the paint. Adams is a veteran post who has taken a leadership role in Oklahoma City. Towns is a young big man who can score in the paint, but also has a long game. Keep an eye on how Towns guards a player like Adams in the post.

Some believe that Adams is a top-five center in the league. That might be a stretch but it’s not far from true. Adams is going to try and get all his points in the paint and it will be exciting to see how Towns plays against a center like that.

Towns had a similar match-up in Sacramento against DeMarcus Cousins. Granted DeMarcus is better than Adams and can shoot outside the paint, but we saw how Towns guards the paint. On the other side, look at how Towns can use his quickness on offense to expose Adams.

Nov 3, 2016; Minneapolis, MN, USA; Minnesota Timberwolves head coach Tom Thibodeau looks on during the second half against the Denver Nuggets at Target Center. The Nuggets won 102-99. Mandatory Credit: Jesse Johnson-USA TODAY Sports

Game Prediction

The Thunder might have an overall more talented roster than the Timberwolves, and they do have MVP candidate in Russell Westbrook, but this game should be a close one. It does seem as though the Thunder and Timberwolves tend to have close games every single time out. If the Wolves can really expose the lack of offensive weapons that the Thunder have, this could be marked as a ‘W’ in the win column.

I’m counting on the Wolves to win this game just like I am every game. Tune in at 5:00 p.m. Central Time to watch this Western Conference battle.

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