How To Watch Thunder at Timberwolves Play-In Game On Friday
The 2022-23 NBA regular season has come to an end, which means it is time for the Play-In Tournament and playoffs to begin!
On Friday night, the Oklahoma City Thunder and Minnesota Timberwolves will battle it out in Minnesota for the 8-seed and final spot in the playoffs. The winner will advance to play the Denver Nuggets in the first-round of the postseason, while the other team will pack their bags and throw in the towel for the season!
Finishing a two games ahead of the Thunder in the standings, the Timberwolves put up a great fight against the Los Angeles Lakers in their previous play-in game. Ultimately though, turnovers and offensive lapses cost the Timberwolves a shot at the 7-seed in the conference.
Naz Reid and Jaden McDaniels remain out for this game, but Rudy Gobert remains a question mark for Minnesota, as the three-time Defensive Player of the Year continues to deal with a nagging back issue.
On the other side of things, Shai Gilgeous-Alexander and the Oklahoma City Thunder continue to surprise everyone who doubted them entering the year!
Entering the season, many thought the Thunder would be continuing their rebuild with second overall pick Chet Holmgren sidelined for the entire season, but Gilgeous-Alexander has had an MVP-like season in Oklahoma City and a lot of the young talents on this team have really come together to form something special.
Will the Thunder pick up another unexpected victory and make it to the playoffs or will Anthony Edwards and Karl-Anthony Towns hold things down in front of their home faithful?
Here's how to watch Friday night’s game, with game time and TV, lineups, bios and other must-know details.
How to watch Thunder vs. Timberwolves
WHO: Oklahoma City Thunder (40-42) vs. Minnesota Timberwolves (42-40)
WHAT: 2023 NBA Western Conference Play-In Tournament: 8-seed game
WHEN: 9:30 p.m. ET, Friday, April 14
WHERE: Target Center, Minneapolis, Minnesota
TV: ESPN
Key Stats & Facts For Thunder vs. Pelicans
- The Thunder and Timberwolves faced off four times during the regular season with the Timberwolves winning three of the four games by an average of 6.3 points in those three games. Oklahoma City’s only win against Minnesota was a 7-point road victory.
- The Timberwolves finished the regular season ranking 23rd in offensive rating and 10th in defensive rating, while the Thunder finished the regular season ranking 13th in offensive rating and 14th in defensive rating.
- Minnesota is 22-19 at home this season and Oklahoma City is 17-25 on the road, including postseason games.
Last Matchup:
December 16, 2022 - Timberwolves 112, Thunder 110
The Thunder and Timberwolves last played four months ago with Naz Reid stepping up and leading the way for Minnesota with 28 points and nine rebounds. Both Karl-Anthony Towns and Rudy Gobert were out for this game and they had not yet traded for veteran Mike Conley. Shai Gilgeous-Alexander finished with a game-high 35 points on 11-23 shooting and he also had seven rebounds. Oklahoma City turned the ball over 22 times in this game.
Latest Injury News:
Thunder Injuries: Chet Holmgren (foot) - Out, Kenrich Williams (wrist) - Out, Aleksej Pokusevski (knee) - Out
Timberwolves Injuries: Naz Reid (wrist) - Out, Jaden McDaniels (hand) - Out, Rudy Gobert (back) - Questionable, Jaylen Nowell (knee) - Questionable, Karl-Anthony Towns (calf) - Questionable
Projected Starters:
PROJECTED THUNDER STARTERS:
- G Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, 6-6 guard: 31.4 points, 4.8 rebounds, 5.5 assists (2022-23 season stats)
- G Josh Giddey, 6-8 guard: 16.6 points, 7.9 rebounds, 6.2 assists
- G Luguentz Dort, 6-3 guard: 13.7 points, 4.6 rebounds
- G/F Jalen Williams, 6-6 guard/forward: 14.4 points, 4.5 rebounds
- F/C Jaylin Williams, 6-10 forward/center: 5.9 points, 4.9 rebounds
PROJECTED TIMBERWOLVES STARTERS:
- G Mike Conley, 6-1 guard: 14.0 points, 5.0 assists (2022-23 season stats)
- G Anthony Edwards, 6-4 guard: 24.6 points, 5.8 rebounds, 4.4 assists
- F Taurean Prince, 6-7 forward: 9.1 points, 2.4 rebounds
- F Kyle Anderson, 6-9 forward: 9.4 points, 5.3 rebounds, 4.9 assists
- C Karl-Anthony Towns (Q), 6-11 center: 20.8 points, 8.1 rebounds, 4.8 assists
Betting Odds:
- The Timberwolves are currently 5.5-point favorites over the Thunder as of Friday morning, according to SI Sportsbook.
- The over/under for this matchup is currently set at 228.5 total points.
What to watch for:
- The Minnesota Timberwolves are looking to make it back to the playoffs for just the third time since 2004.
- The Oklahoma City Thunder are looking to make it back to the playoffs after missing the postseason for the last two seasons.
- Minnesota is 36-21 this season when they score at least 110 points. Oklahoma City is 35-28 this season when they score at least 110 points, including postseason play.
- The Timberwolves have never played the Thunder in the playoffs, but they did play the Seattle SuperSonics once during the 1998 playoffs, losing 3-2 to the SuperSonics in the first-round of the playoffs.
Be sure to catch up on the newest episode of The Fast Break Podcast hosted by Fastbreak's own Brett Siegel!
Streaming on Apple Podcasts and Spotify, The Fast Break Podcast takes you inside the league with the latest news, intel, rumors and interviews from those close to the action for all 30 teams. Be on the lookout for a new episodes every Friday.
