The Game
The Wolves play their sixth-straight Eastern Conference opponent to start the 2019-20 season.
So far, so good.
Minnesota sits at 4-1 overall, tied for first in the Western Conference.
The Wolves will have their hands full in this one, though, going up against Giannis Antetokounmpo and the Milwaukee Bucks. The Bucks are 4-2, fourth in the East.
Antetokounmpo is up to his old tricks, averaging 26.7 points, 13.8 rebounds, 7.7 assists and 1.8 blocks per game while shooting 58.8 percent from the field. I’d expect Robert Covington to get Antetokounmpo as his defensive assignment.
What makes matters even more difficult for Minnesota will be that the Wolves are without Karl-Anthony Towns for the second-straight game (suspension).
Minnesota looked good without him in Saturday night’s 131-109 win over the Washington Wizards. Of course, there is a huge gap between the Bucks and Wizards.
A player to keep an eye on for the Wolves is point guard Jeff Teague. Teague is sneakily having a great season, averaging 13.8 points and seven assists while shooting 51.1 percent from the field in just 28 minutes per game.
The biggest factor with Teague is his health, but he’s been so important to the Wolves so far this season.
What: Wolves vs. BucksWhen: 7 p.m. CT, Monday, Nov. 4Where: Target CenterWatch: Fox Sports NorthListen: 830 WCCOTickets
Connections
Not much here.
Cameron Reynolds, a lefty shooting guard, played 19 games with the Timberwolves last season and averaged 5.0 points and 1.6 rebounds with Minnesota.
This offseason, Reynolds signed a two-way contract with the Bucks. He has yet to appear in an NBA game with Milwaukee.
Reynolds has a sweet stroke. He shot 41.2 percent from deep last season. We’ll see if Reynolds, 23, can continue to develop with Milwaukee and ultimately crack an NBA roster outside of the two-way contract.
Would You Believe Me If I Told You . . .
This is the Timberwolves’ best five-game start since the 2012-13 season. Rick Adelman was on the coach of that team. The top scorers on that team were Kevin Love, Nikola Pekovic and Andrei Kirilenko. Ah, memories.
If the Wolves were to beat Milwaukee, their 5-1 record would be the best since the 2001-02 team. That squad started out 6-0.
Injury Report:
Wolves: Karl-Anthony Towns (suspension) is out.
Bucks: Pat Connaughton (shoulder) and Wesley Matthews (ankle) are questionable.
Projected Starters:
Wolves: PG—Teague, SG – Wiggins, SF – Graham, PF – Covington, C – Dieng
Bucks: PG—Bledsoe, SG – Middleton, SF – Matthews, PF – Antetokounmpo, C – Lopez