Preview: San Antonio Spurs at Minnesota Timberwolves – Game #4

The San Antonio Spurs have won two straight games and have a 2-1 record after three games. That’s not bad for a team that was expected to be the worst team in the NBA.

After beginning their season with a loss versus the Charlotte Hornets, the Spurs beat the Indiana Pacers and then upset the Philadelphia 76ers.

Tonight, the Spurs will try to win their third straight game when they take on the Minnesota Timberwolves. The Timberwolves also enter the contest with a record of 2-1.

San Antonio and Minnesota will see a lot of each other over the next week. After tonight’s game, the two teams play on Wednesday and then again on Sunday. The third game between the two teams will take place in San Antonio.

San Antonio Spurs Starting Lineup

Even though rookie Jeremy Sochan played only ten minutes against the Sixers, expect head coach Gregg Popovich to keep starting the 19-year-old at power forward. The four other starters will be Tre Jones at point guard, Devin Vassell at shooting guard, Keldon Johnson at small forward and Jakob Poeltl at center.

Minnesota Timberwolves Starting Lineup

The Timberwolves have started the same five players in all three of their games: D’Angelo Russell at point guard, Anthony Edwards at shooting guard, Jaden McDaniels at small forward, Karl-Anthony Towns at power forward and Rudy Gobert at center. Expect to see that starting lineup tonight against the Spurs.

San Antonio Injury Update

The Spurs have no injuries to report. That said, the Spurs will be without three of their rookies against the Timberwolves. That’s because Malaki Branham, Blake Wesley and Dominick Barlow will be with the Austin Spurs as the G League team begins their training camp.

Minnesota Timberwolves Injury Update

Minnesota has two injured players: Kyle Anderson and Austin Rivers. Anderson, the former Spurs first round draft pick, signed with the Timberwolves over the summer but will miss the game due to a back injury. Rivers is out with a hip injury.

Charles Bassey In, Jordan Hall Out

In a relatively minor transaction, the Spurs have signed Charles Bassey to a two-way contract and have released Jordan Hall. Hall was on a two-way deal with the Spurs.

Bassey will know his way around South Texas, as the Nigerian born center played basketball at St. Anthony Catholic High School in San Antonio. The 21-year-old went on to play college basketball at Western Kentucky and was drafted with the 53rd pick in the 2021 NBA Draft by the 76ers. On Oct. 13, he was waived by Philadelphia.

Bassey reportedly had discussions with more than 20 NBA teams after he got let go by the Sixers, so the Spurs should be happy that he decided to return to San Antonio.

Betting Guide: Spurs at Timberwolves

The Timberwolves are favored by 8.5 points and the over/under is 234.5 points. Considering how well the Spurs have played in their last two games, it’d be dangerous to bet on them losing big tonight. That over/under is also a difficult call due to the inconsistent Spurs defense.

A better bet is taking the over on Keldon Johnson points. Prognosticators have put the line at 20.5 points. Considering that Johnson has scored at least 20 points in 12 straight regular season games dating back to last season, betting on Johnson to score more than 20.5 points is the safest possible bet tonight.