Timberwolves at Spurs, 7:30 p.m.AT&T CenterFox Sports North Plus, NBA TV, 830 WCCO
Why you should watch:
The Western Conference playoff race is hot right now and these two teams are right in the thick of it.
The Wolves sit in fifth in the West with a 40-29 record while the Spurs are 39-30, eighth and just a game back from the Wolves. There’s not much separating a team hosting a first-round playoff matchup to a team missing the playoffs entirely, which is scary and awesome at the same time.
Minnesota is riding a two-game winning streak against the Warriors and Wizards, respectively.
Karl-Anthony Towns was an absolute stud in those games, averaging 34 points, 13 rebounds and 2.5 assists per game while shooting 63.4 percent from the field, 62.5 percent from the 3-point line and 84.6 percent from the free-throw line.
San Antonio had lost nine of 11 games before beating the Magic and Pelicans this week.
Both teams are without their All-Star two-way players in Jimmy Butler and Kawhi Leonard.
Things don’t get any easier for the Wolves. They head straight home after the game to host the first-place Rockets on Sunday evening.
Opposing player I’ll be watching:
LaMarcus Aldridge is having his best season during his Spurs career, averaging 22.2 points and 8.3 rebounds per game while shooting 49.8 percent from the field.
After his first two seasons of struggling to fit in, Aldridge is San Antonio’s go-to-guy with Leonard out.
If Aldridge and the Spurs miss out on the playoffs, it’d be the first time since 2012-13 for him and 1996-97 for the Spurs.
There’s a lot riding on every game.
Injuries:
Spurs: Leonard (quad) is out. Dejounte Murray (ankle) is questionable. Danny Green (facial) is probable.
Wolves: Butler (knee) is out
Starting Lineups:
Spurs: PG – Murray, SG – Mills, SF – Green, PF – Anderson, C - Aldridge
Wolves: PG – Teague, SG – Wiggins, SF – Bjelica, PF – Gibson, C – Towns