Timberwolves-Sacramento game preview
November 9, 2018 at 4:00AM
Last chance for victory on a frustrating road trip
Wolves update: The Wolves will try to prevent their five-game trip from being a total disaster after losing the first four. They had a chance to win Wednesday against the Lakers, but couldn't rebound a series of Lakers misses in the final minute. … It's unknown if G Jimmy Butler will play after he logged 43 minutes against the Lakers. Wolves coach Tom Thibodeau played all of his starters a lot, with no bench player topping 13 minutes. Reserves scored only seven points. … C Karl-Anthony Towns has gotten off to strong starts in each of the past two games, but has only six points combined in the second halves.
Kings update: Before the season, the Kings (6-5) looked like they would be the doormat of the Western Conference and an easy victory any time they came up on the schedule, but it hasn't quite worked out that way. … Former Wolves bench F Nemanja Bjelica is starting for Sacramento and averaging 13.1 points. Some of the high draft picks the Kings have had in recent years are starting to develop, such as G Buddy Hield (20.1 points per game) and G De'Aaron Fox (18.7). The No. 2 overall pick from last year's draft, F Marvin Bagley III, is averaging 12.8 points off the bench. The Kings are fourth in the league in effective field-goal percentage, a formula that adjusts shooting percentage to account for the point value of a three-pointer, at .553.
CHRIS HINE
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DiVincenzo has just become a starter for the team when he was sidelined because of “turf toe.”
