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Wolves at Kings
9:00 pm Central
FSN
The Wolves continue their road trip tonight in Sacramento against a Kings team that is languishing at 20-38. They lost last night in Los Angeles against the Lakers, so are on the 2nd night of a back to back, though DeMarcus Cousins did not play last night due to a suspension.
The Kings have made several changes this season, most notably acquiring Rudy Gay from Toronto, but it hasn't resulted in too many wins; they are currently only a half game out of the Western Conference cellar. This is one the Wolves really need to keep the momentum going.
Let's take this opportunity to check in on another Kings trade acquisition: erstwhile Wolf Derrick Williams. He's more or less playing at the same level as he did in his Wolves career, though there are a couple of encouraging signs. He's had his best 2 point FG% stretch since joining the Kings, and despite his usage dropping to the lowest point in his career, he's getting to the line more times per 36 then he did in any of his Wolves seasons. However, his 3 point shooting has completely fallen apart, and he still isn't doing much of anything off the ball. It all adds up to more or less the same player.
For the Wolves, Kevin Martin and Nikola Pekovic plan to play tonight; whether they will both be in the starting lineup isn't known. Pekovic says he still has pain in his ankle, but that he can play with it. Frankly, that makes me a bit nervous, as last season his stretch of ineffectiveness came when he was suffering from ankle pain. Hopefully he is able to play close to his normal level, though his minutes will likely to be limited at least for a while. Still, the team needs bigs given the injury to Ronny Turiaf.
Expected lineups
Kings
Isaiah Thomas
Ben McLemore
Rudy Gay
Jason Thompson
DeMarcus Cousins
Wolves (guessing)
Ricky Rubio
Kevin Martin
Corey Brewer
Dante Cunningham
Kevin Love
This is your first half game thread. This is a link to Sactown Royalty. Be excellent.
no no and no.
Enjoy the game. Go Wolves.