Denver Nuggets vs. Minnesota Timberwolves Preview

The Denver Nuggets travel to Minneapolis to face the Minnesota Timberwolves at the Target Center for the second game of a back-to-back.

This is the second time in the past week that the Denver Nuggets and the Minnesota Timberwolves have met; and in their last meeting, the Nuggets pulled off an 18-point comeback to defeat the Wolves in overtime at the Pepsi Center on Friday. Friday’s game against Minnesota gave the Denver Nuggets the momentum needed to defeat the Houston Rockets on Monday night in their final game of their home-stand, 114-108. Danilo Gallinari led the Nuggets in scoring in Friday’s win over Minnesota with 23 points, while point guard Jameer Nelson added 20 points to the cause.

Next: Emmanuel Mudiay to Miss Time Due to Ankle Injury

In Monday’s game against the Houston Rockets, an excellent offensive effort propelled the Denver Nuggets to an important victory, which put them only a .5 game out of the final playoff spot in the Western Conference. The Denver Nuggets at one point held a 15 point lead on Monday, but had to hold off a furious rally by the Rockets in order to secure the victory. The Minnesota Timberwolves are .5 game back of the Nuggets right now, placing even more importance on Tuesday’s contest.

The Denver Nuggets lost their point guard of the future, Emmanuel Mudiay, in Friday’s game due to an ankle sprain. Though Mudiay is the future, his absence does not necessarily affect the team in a bad way. The Nuggets shot over 50 percent from the field on Monday against Denver, and according to ESPN.com, are now 10-3 when scoring over 100 points. Will Barton scored 23 points on Monday to lead Denver, meaning he will probably receive a good bit of defensive attention when he takes the court on Tuesday.

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The Minnesota Timberwolves are coming off a 108-101 loss to the Phoenix Suns on the road on Sunday. The Wolves are 1-6 in their last 7 games, and are giving up 109 points during that rough stretch. This bodes well for the Denver Nuggets, especially on the road.

Andrew Wiggins leads the Minnesota Timberwolves in scoring with a little over 22 points per game, while rookie Karl-Anthony Towns continues to fill up the stat sheet, averaging 14.9 points per contest while adding 9.2 rebounds per game. Sophomore guard Zach LaVine is showing signs of becoming an impact player for Minnesota, as he scored 28 points on 10-19 shooting on Sunday at Phoenix. Along with Kevin Martin, who is averaging 13 points per game, the Timberwolves lineup does present a challenge to the Denver Nuggets.

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The Denver Nuggets size in the front-court is important to pull off an important road victory on Tuesday in Minnesota against the Wolves. Center Joffrey Lauvergne (who has started at the 5 over the last week), recorded a double-double on Monday against the Houston Rockets, scoring 14 points and adding 11 rebounds to fill out the stat sheet. Against a front-court of Towns and veteran Kevin Garnett, the Denver Nuggets must leverage their rebounding prowess (ranked 9th in the NBA as of Tuesday) into an advantage.

If the Denver Nuggets can continue to play to their strengths (as they did on Monday), utilizing good shooting and securing rebounds, Tuesday’s game at the Target Center is very winnable. The young Wolves are a dynamic team, but a club that is still trying to grasp their identity and to gain chemistry among their litany of young talent.

Next: Denver Nuggets Defeat Houston Rockets, 114-108

Even without Emmanuel Mudiay, the Denver Nuggets are gaining some momentum after a season-long 8-game losing streak a couple of weeks ago. With another win, the Nuggets will have their longest winning streak of the 2015-2016 season thus far, and are close to getting into the Western Conference playoff discussion. The two teams tip-off at 6:00 PM.

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