wolves gameday
7 p.m. vs. Oklahoma City • Target Center • FSN Plus, 830-Am
Preview: The 44-37 Thunder needs to win to keep its quest for the Western Conference's eighth and final spot alive. The Thunder will claim it in a season when it has played mostly without superstar Kevin Durant if it wins and San Antonio wins at New Orleans. If both the Thunder and Pelicans win or both lose, then New Orleans claims the final playoff spot because of a head-to-head tiebreaker. The 16-65 Wolves must lose and finish the season with 12 consecutive defeats to guarantee themselves the NBA's worst record and thus the best (25 percent) chance of winning the May draft lottery.
Player to watch: Russell Westbrook leads the NBA in scoring with a 28.0 scoring average. Since the All-Star break, Westbrook is averaging 31.2 points, 10 assists and 8.6 rebounds per game. He averaged 34.3 points, 10.2 rebounds and 11.4 assists in those first 10 games after the All-Star Game. Michael Jordan is the only player in the past 50 years to average at least 33 points, 10 assists and 10 rebounds over a 10-game stretch. Westbrook's 11 triple-doubles this season are the most in a single season since Jason Kidd had 13 in the 2007-08 season.
Injuries: Wolves F Chase Budinger (ankle), C Justin Hamilton (hamstring) and G Kevin Martin (illness) are questionable. F Anthony Bennett (sprained right ankle), C Gorgui Dieng (concussion-like symptoms), F Kevin Garnett (sore left knee), F Shabazz Muhammad (finger surgery), G Gary Neal (sprained left ankle), C Nikola Pekovic (Achilles' tendon surgery), G Ricky Rubio (ankle surgery) are out.
JERRY ZGODA
