The Warriors play their second road game in as many nights when they take on the Timberwolves in Minnesota on Sunday.
Warriors at TimberwolvesSunday, Dec. 114:00 p.m.Target CenterMinneapolis, MN
TV: CSN Bay Area
RADIO: 95.7 The Game, Warriors Radio Network
BACK-TO-BACK (AGAIN)
The Warriors will play their fourth road game in five days and second in as many nights when they travel to Minnesota to take on the Timberwolves on Sunday. This will be the second of four matchups between the two teams this season, after Golden State prevailed 115-102 at home in their first encounter back on November 26. Tipoff is scheduled for 4:00 p.m. (Pacific). Watch the action on CSN Bay Area, or listen to the call on 95.7 The Game or on the Warriors Radio Network.
LAST TIME OUT
The Warriors suffered their first defeat of their current road trip, falling 110-89 to the Memphis Grizzlies on Saturday night. Full Recap
MATCHUP AT A GLANCE
GSW
20-4
1st in West
118.1 PPG (1st)
44.6 RPG (9th)
31.1 APG (1st)
MIN
6-17
14th in West
103.7 PPG (18th)
42.0 RPG (28th)
21.8 APG (17th)
PROJECTED STARTERS
GSW: Stephen Curry, Klay Thompson, Kevin Durant, Draymond Green and Zaza Pachulia
MIN: Ricky Rubio, Zach LaVine, Andrew Wiggins, Gorgui Dieng and Karl-Anthony Towns
INJURY & ROSTER NOTES
GSW: Zaza Pachulia (right wrist contusion) is out. Team Notes
MIN: Nemanja Bjelica (right ankle) is questionable. Nikola Pekovic (right ankle) is out. Team Notes
CHICKEN OR THE EGG?
Now more than one quarter of the way through the season, certain trends are becoming more and more apparent, and when it comes to the Warriors, it appears they take their cue from their star-studded backcourt. In Golden State’s 20 victories thus far, Stephen Curry and Klay Thompson have combined for an average of 50.1 points per game. However, in their four defeats, the Splash Brothers have combined for an average of just 32.0 points per contest, which may explain why three-quarters of Golden State’s losses have been of the blowout variety. Whether it’s the Warriors that struggle when the Splash Brothers don’t perform well offensively or the other way around, the fact of the matter is simple: the Dubs don’t often win when Curry and Thompson aren’t their usual productive selves. Granted, those occasions seem to be few and far between, but on the nights when the Splash Brothers aren’t scoring, Golden State is going to have to find other ways to win.
TEAM LEADERS
GSW
PTS: Durant (26.0)
REB: Green (8.4)
AST: Green (7.1)
MIN
PTS: Wiggins (22.1)
REB: Towns (10.4)
AST: Rubio (6.4)
MINNESOTA SCOUTING REPORT
The first quarter of the season has, simply put, been a disaster for Minnesota. After entering the year as a popular pick to make the postseason, the young Timberwolves enter Sunday’s matchup with the Warriors having lost 10 of their previous 12 games and currently sit at 6-17 on the season, the second-worst record in the Western Conference. Off those two victories, one was by three points over a slumping Suns team, while the other came in overtime against the Hornets last week. Minnesota hasn’t won a home game since November 17th, which is exactly the task that awaits them when the Warriors come to town on Sunday. Golden State is coming off a less-than-stellar loss of their own, a 110-89 defeat in Memphis on Saturday, meaning the Warriors will put their NBA-record streak of 110 consecutive regular-season games without consecutive losses on the line on Sunday.