Timberwolves at Pelicans
The New Orleans Pelicans are slowly beginning to look like a competitive team, at least when Anthony Davis plays well. Davis will try to follow up a strong performance in a win over Oklahoma City when he goes up against fellow Kentucky product Karl-Anthony Towns and the visiting Minnesota Timberwolves on Saturday.
Davis has gone for 30 or more points three times in the last four games, including a historic 59-point, 20-rebound effort on Sunday at Detroit, and was held to single digits at Washington on Tuesday. That visit to Washington served as the Pelicans’ lone loss in those last four contests, and Davis is averaging 26.9 points in wins while putting up 21.9 in losses this season. “I think he’s playing great basketball,” New Orleans coach Alvin Gentry told reporters of Davis. “The unfortunate thing for him is that our team, we’re not winning enough games that people are talking about it, but he’s had a fantastic year.” Towns is on his way to a likely Rookie of the Year Award and is helping to carry a young Timberwolves squad that dropped three of its last four games.
TV: 7 p.m. ET, FSN North (Minnesota), FSN New Orleans
ABOUT THE TIMBERWOLVES (18-40): Minnesota is in the process of fully handing its team over to young stars Towns and Andrew Wiggins, and released veteran point guard Andre Miller on Thursday while reportedly negotiating a buyout with veteran shooting guard Kevin Martin. "Andre was a consummate professional and set a good example for our younger players on what it takes to be a pro in this league," Timberwolves general manager Milt Newton said in a statement. "We wish him the best." Kevin Garnett is still around to mentor the young frontcourt but has not played since Jan. 23 due to a knee injury and is logging fewer than 15 minutes when healthy.
ABOUT THE PELICANS (23-34): New Orleans as a whole and Davis in particular looked poorly at Washington on Tuesday but was a different team in earning a 123-119 win over the Thunder. “I think in this league, the players’ mentality is, ‘That one’s in the past. Who do we play next? Who’s the next person in front of our schedule?’ And they approach that game as if nothing has happened because you can’t really do anything about it,” Gentry told reporters. “That’s one of the things that we preach. We preach next play, next game.” The Pelicans have some work to do to get back into the postseason race and linger 5 1/2 games back of the No. 8 spot.
BUZZER BEATERS
1. Pelicans G Jrue Holiday has scored 20 or more points in seven straight games.
2. Timberwolves C Gorgui Dieng is averaging 19 points on 15-of-19 shooting in the last two games.
3. New Orleans has taken seven straight in the series, including a 116-102 win at Minnesota on Feb. 8.