Pistons at Timberwolves
Top pick Andrew Wiggins will make his home debut Thursday when the Minnesota Timberwolves look to rebound from a season-opening loss by hosting the Detroit Pistons. Wiggins was the big prize for Minnesota when it shipped star forward Kevin Love to Cleveland, but he was not much of a factor in a 105-101 loss at Memphis on Wednesday. After being given the starting nod when guard Kevin Martin was sidelined with an ankle injury, Wiggins scored six points in 19 minutes.
The Pistons' first game with Stan Van Gundy at the helm did not go as planned for a team looking to take a step forward this season. They shot 36.9 percent from the floor and 57.9 from the line in an 89-79 loss at Denver on Wednesday, getting 25 points in the losing effort from Josh Smith. If history is any guide, the struggles for Van Gundy's squad will continue; Minnesota has won eight consecutive meetings by an average of 13.6 points.
TV: 8 p.m. ET, FSN Detroit, FSN North (Minnesota)
ABOUT THE PISTONS (0-1): Detroit will need to get a whole lot more out of its starting backcourt after a lackluster showing versus Denver. Brandon Jennings scored just four points in 20 minutes and Kentavious Caldwell-Pope was an abysmal 3-for-19 from the floor in 36 minutes. D.J. Augustin's 15 points off the bench helped pick up some of the slack for Detroit, which was held under 80 points just twice last season.
ABOUT THE TIMBERWOLVES (0-1): Point guard Ricky Rubio had seven of the Timberwolves' 23 turnovers while center Nikola Pekovic, who lost much of the 2013-14 season to injury, was held to five points on 2-of-9 shooting in the loss at Memphis. Rubio averaged 13 points and 9.5 assists and Pekovic averaged 17.5 points during Minnesota's two-game series sweep last season. Martin, who is considered day-to-day, posted an average of 21 points against Detroit.
BUZZER BEATERS
1. Pistons F Greg Monroe will sit as he serves the second game of a two-game suspension for a DUI.
2. Timberwolves C Ronny Turiaf missed the opener in Memphis due to a sore hip.
3. Detroit was 6-24 against Western Conference foes last season.