Jazz at Timberwolves
The Minnesota Timberwolves' evolution into a defensive powerhouse under coach Tom Thibodeau remains a work in progress. The Timberwolves will get a look at what a cohesive defensive unit looks like when they host the Utah Jazz on Monday.
The Jazz dropped four in a row before rebounding by holding the Denver Nuggets and the Atlanta Hawks to an average of 75.5 points in back-to-back wins bridging Thanksgiving. "Guys were focused on it," Jazz coach Quin Snyder told reporters after Friday's 95-68 triumph over Atlanta. "It's something that we want to be. We want to be a really good defensive team, and we knew we were playing against the best defensive team in the league. We were focused on being disciplined, and that's the main thing." The Timberwolves limited the Suns to 40.5 percent shooting and 6-of-26 from 3-point range in a 98-85 win at Phoenix on Friday but could not muster the same effort on consecutive nights. Minnesota was ripped 115-102 at Golden State on Saturday as the Warriors shot 55.6 percent from the floor.
TV: 8 p.m. ET, ROOT (Utah), FSN North (Minnesota)
ABOUT THE JAZZ (9-8): The star of Friday's defensive effort was center Rudy Gobert, who recorded 10 points, 10 rebounds and five blocks while holding All-Star counterpart Dwight Howard to four points on 2-of-9 shooting. It marked the sixth double-double in the last eight games for the 7-1 Gobert, who is averaging 11.8 points on 68 percent shooting, 10.9 rebounds and 2.75 blocks in that span. Power forward Trey Lyles is seeing more time with Derrick Favors (knee) out of the lineup and added a double-double with 13 points and 10 rebounds in Friday's win.
ABOUT THE TIMBERWOLVES (5-11): Minnesota dropped four of its last five games but can count one positive in the offensive output from guard Zach LaVine. The two-time slam dunk champion became an internet star all over again with his dunk on Phoenix center Alex Len and poured in 31 points on 13-of-24 shooting in Saturday's setback. LaVine, 21, is averaging 20.6 points on 47.1 percent shooting over the last five contests.
BUZZER BEATERS
1. Minnesota G Andrew Wiggins is 2-of-20 from 3-point range over the last five games.
2. Jazz PG George Hill is averaging 22.5 points on 16-of-27 shooting in two games since returning from a thumb injury.
3. Utah took three of the four meetings last season and seven of the last nine in the series.