Minnesota Timberwolves vs Golden State Warriors Prediction: Combined starting 5 featuring Stephen Curry and D'Angelo Russell
The 8-8 Golden State Warriors will host the Minnesota Timberwolves at Chase Center on Monday. While the Warriors are still looking to find some consistency in the 2020-21 NBA season, the Timberwolves have had a rough start due to injuries, health and safety protocols and their inability to close out games.
Combined starting 5 featuring Minnesota Timberwolves and Golden State Warriors players
Despite Stephen Curry's decent performances in the 2020-21 NBA season, the Golden State Warriors have been largely inconsistent. Even Curry has had some rough nights, and the team has suffered some blowouts. Recently, they fell against the Utah Jazz by 19 points.
The Warriors have not been great on both sides of the floor. They rank 24th on offensive rating and 17th on defensive rating. Their net rating (-3.5) ranks 24th in the NBA. They have lost eight games, and six were double-digit defeats.
The Minnesota Timberwolves, on the other hand, currently have the worst record in the NBA's Western Conference (4-11), with their circumstances far from ideal.
Their best player, Karl-Anthony Towns, has played just four matches in the 2020-21 NBA campaign due to a wrist injury and a positive COVID-19 test. Towns remains day-to-day according to the latest injury report, so his status is unknown for this game.
It has been hard for the Timberwolves to win games, but they managed to take down the New Orleans Pelicans in their most recent outing.
In this article, we will create a combined starting five from the rosters of the Golden State Warriors and the Minnesota Timberwolves
Guard - Stephen Curry (Golden State Warriors)
Stephen Curry has been carrying the Golden State Warriors. The team has shown glimpses of great basketball, but some of their losses have been quite bad. However, Curry is still having a nice year.
The two-time NBA MVP is averaging 28 points, six assists, and six rebounds per game, while his shooting splits are 45/38/93. He recently surpassed Reggie Miller for second place in NBA history in three-pointers made against the Utah Jazz.
Curry has guided the Golden State Warriors to stunning victories, but the franchise are just eighth in the Western Conference and have struggled to put great results together.
Guard - D'Angelo Russell (Minnesota Timberwolves)
D'Angelo Russell has been one of the positives for the Minnesota Timberwolves this season.
Though they will obviously miss Karl-Anthony Towns' 22 points per night, Russell is second in the team in scoring, with 20 points per game. He is also tied with Ricky Rubio for a team-high 5.5 assists per game.
Russell has struggled with his shot a bit, though he has made 40% of his three-pointers (7.5 attempts per game). He needs to be more consistent for the T-Wolves.
In their last game, Russell rested, and Rubio started in his place to guide the Minnesota Timberwolves to a solid win over the New Orleans Pelicans.