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Teams on opposite ends of the Northwest Division face off when the Portland Trail Blazers (10-26, 14th in the West) travel to take on the Minnesota Timberwolves (26-11, 1st in the West). Portland will be playing on the tail end of a back-to-back as they play in Oklahoma City on Thursday (Note: This article was published before the results of the Blazers/Thunder game). In their previous game, Portland lost 112-84 to the Knicks in New York as 12.5-point underdogs. The T-Wolves just battled the Celtics in overtime, ultimately losing 127-120 but covered the 10.5-point spread. This is the first of four matchups between these teams this season. Tipoff is scheduled for 8:00 EST from the Target Center in Minneapolis.
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The Blazers are building for the future, they have a young core, and their starting lineup just got even younger. Portland moved their number 2 pick Scoot Henderson to the starting lineup, giving the young prospect more minutes and looks against top competition. Henderson is in no position to win the Rookie of the Year, as Wembanyama and Holmgren are heavy betting favorites, but Portland is hoping Henderson can increase his production in his new role. In their last game, Portland was led by Jerami Grant with 21 points in the loss to the Knicks.
Portland is led in scoring by 24-year old guard Anfernee Simons with 24.6 PPG, and he also adds 5.3 APG and 3.5 RPG. Simons is a streaky scorer, he went off for 38 in their last win coming against Brooklyn, but had just six points in 23 minutes in the previous game. Jerami Grant got a five year, $160 million dollar contract with the Blazers, he is thei r second leading scorer at 21.8 PPG, but only grabs 3.6 RPG which is surprising given his athleticism. Scoot Henderson is not a starter, and is averaging 12.1 PPG and 5.0 APG in his role. DeAndre Ayton has been out of the lineup lately with a knee injury, leaving the Blazers to start Duop Reath at center with his 8.8 PPG. Toumani Camara has been the fifth starter, the role player adds 7.1 PPG.
The Blazers bring two of their best players off the bench, Shaedon Sharpe is a rising star scoring 16.2 PPG, and Malcolm Brogdon is a reliable veteran point guard scoring 14.9 PPG and leading the team with 5.2 APG. Portland ranks 30th in the NBA in offensive efficiency and 19th in defensive efficiency according to dunksandthrees.com. The Blazers play the the 9th fastest tempo in the league.
Injury Report:
Questionable: DeAndre Ayton, Jabari Walker
Out: Robert Williams III