Thunderous Intentions
Fansided

OKC Thunder seek 5th win in row, via back to back vs. Wolves: preview

By Matthew Hallett

Karl-Anthony Towns #32 of the Minnesota Timberwolves handles the ball during the game against Steven Adams #12 of OKC Thunder (Photo by Jordan Johnson/NBAE via Getty Images)
Karl-Anthony Towns #32 of the Minnesota Timberwolves handles the ball during the game against Steven Adams #12 of OKC Thunder (Photo by Jordan Johnson/NBAE via Getty Images) /
facebooktwitterreddit
Prev
2 of 3
Next
OKC Thunder
Andrew Wiggins #22 of the Minnesota Timberwolves drives to the basket against the OKC Thunder (Photo by David Sherman/NBAE via Getty Images) /

Keys to the game:

Wolves superstar duo:

Karl-Anthony Towns and Andrew Wiggins are both averaging more than 22 points per game. The only other active player on the roster who is averaging more than ten points per game is Robert Covington, with 12.7 points per game.

To beat the Wolves, it is almost a case of letting Wiggins and Towns get theirs and close the rest of the team down. The two stars take 37 of the 92 shots by the Wolves this season. If two players are taking more than one-third of the shots, this is a problem.

Related Story. Thunder vs. Minnesota Timberwolves, 2019-20 team preview. light

Wolves hustle stat strengths:

That said, it’s not all doom and gloom for the Timberwolves who have their share of strengths.  They are fourth in the NBA in blocked shots with 6.0 per game. This is to be expected as they have five centers on the roster.

They rank fifth in steals (8.5 per game) and offensive rebounds (11.1 per game). However, if the OKC Thunder plays to their identity this shouldn’t be a problem as OKC has low turnovers (ranked eighth with 13.9 per game). They also do not get their shots blocked often, being fifth in the league for blocks against at 4.2 per game. This should equate to limiting the Timberwolves’ strengths but is still something to be wary of.

Key matchup:

The two players to keep an eye on in the match Saturday are Robert Covington against Danilo Gallinari. Covington is the Timberwolves best defensive player and is the quintessential 3-an-D guy. If Gallinari has a big night the Thunder will win this one by a long shot.

Home/Thunder News