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Nuggets at Timberwolves Preview

Associated Press

Brian Shaw's tenure as the Denver Nuggets head coach ended amidst mounting losses. Interim coach Melvin Hunt's stint, thus far, is perfect.

Under new leadership, the Nuggets have a realistic chance at their first consecutive victories since mid-January on Wednesday night when they face the Minnesota Timberwolves.

Denver (21-39) had lost six straight and 19 of 21 when the team fired Shaw prior to Tuesday's game against Milwaukee. The Nuggets responded with a 106-95 victory over the Bucks.

''We've had a humongous monkey on our back, trying to get it off and we finally got it off,'' Hunt said.

Danilo Gallinari had a season-high 26 points, Kenneth Faried grabbed 14 boards for his first double-digit rebounding performance since Feb. 9 and Ty Lawson recorded 16 points and 10 assists.

''That's what we are supposed to do,'' Gallinari said.

Gallinari and the Nuggets could earn their first back-to-back wins since a five-game winning streak Jan. 3-14 with a victory over the Western Conference-worst Timberwolves (13-46), who have seemed more competitive since the addition of Kevin Garnett, yet still have lost their last three since a 97-77 win over Washington on Feb. 25.

Minnesota blew a fourth-quarter lead Saturday against Memphis, then missed a potential game-tying 3-pointer with 11 seconds remaining Monday in a 110-105 loss to the Clippers.

Garnett believes his team's new makeup and immaturity has them at a disadvantage.

"We're playing these teams that have been together six or seven years," Garnett told the Timberwolves official website. "We've been together for like 30 seconds.

"I thought at times our immaturity showed tonight. There's a lot of promise, though, and I'll take guys that are willing to compete over anything."

Andrew Wiggins has averaged 21.2 points in his last five games with 17.2 attempted field goals per game in that span, up from 13.1 attempts in his previous 54 games.

Nearly all of his production has come near the rim. Wiggins has not attempted a 3-pointer in his last three games and has attempted 26 free throws in that span - his highest total over a three-game period.

Ricky Rubio and Gary Neal have also upped their offensive efforts. Rubio has averaged 15.3 points and 10.3 assists over his last three games and recorded a triple-double Monday with 18 points, 12 rebounds and 11 assists, while Neal tallied a team-high 19 points.

"We traded for him and all the experts thought we were going to buy him out," coach Flip Saunders said of Neal. "We thought he had a future and we wanted to bring him in to play with our guys and see how he would blend ... He doesn't shy away from big game-type moments and he's a good influence for our younger players."

The Nuggets won the first two meetings against the Timberwolves this season before Wiggins scored 31 in a 113-105 victory Jan. 17. Rubio, Nikola Pekovic and Kevin Martin all sat with injury.

Pekovic (sore right ankle) and Martin (illness) both missed Monday's game and remain questionable for Wednesday.