Timberwolves at Lakers
Minnesota Timberwolves small forward Andrew Wiggins racked up a career-best 47 points against the Los Angeles Lakers earlier this season and he looks to enjoy another productive outing when his squad visits Los Angeles on Friday. Wiggins and his teammates are falling out of the Western Conference playoff race with four consecutive defeats as they face a Lakers' squad that has suffered six straight setbacks.
Wiggins led Minnesota to a 125-99 over the Lakers on Nov. 13 and he is averaging 23.5 points during the skid despite the team's troubles. The Timberwolves fell 100-93 to the San Antonio Spurs on Tuesday to clinch a dubious milestone -- their 12th consecutive losing season. Los Angeles lost 14 of its last 15 games and Tuesday's 133-109 loss to the Los Angeles Clippers marked the sixth time during the stretch that it was defeated by 20 or more points. The Lakers are experimenting with various lineups down the stretch and coach Luke Walton also has been highly vocal about some of the poor performances.
TV: 10:30 p.m. ET, FSN North (Minnesota), Spectrum SportsNet (Los Angeles)
ABOUT THE TIMBERWOLVES (28-42): Minnesota looked like it had a chance to make a frantic late push when it won nine of 14 games but following up that stretch with the four-game losing streak has all but sealed its fate. Now comes the season-ending stretch in which eight of 12 games are on the road and the squad trails Denver by 5 1/2 games with Portland, Dallas and New Orleans also ahead of the Timberwolves. "It definitely is frustrating," Wiggins told reporters. "It's never fun to lose, especially when we're chasing something. But there's still a lot of time left, some games, and we've got to keep playing hard and try to get some wins."
ABOUT THE LAKERS (20-51): Los Angeles found itself down 70-40 at halftime in the loss to the Clippers and Walton again couldn't control his frustration. "The most important message was that playing without a certain amount of effort isn't going to be acceptable or tolerated," Walton told reporters. "To come out in front of our home fans and give that type of effort wasn't right." Point guard Jordan Clarkson struggled to five points on 1-of-9 shooting after registering 13 straight double-digit scoring efforts.
BUZZER BEATERS
1. The Timberwolves are 9-42 when visiting the Lakers.
2. Los Angeles PF Thomas Robinson might be line for more minutes after scoring a season-best 16 points on 7-of-8 shooting in 10 minutes against the Clippers.
3. Minnesota C Karl-Anthony Towns recorded 25 points and 14 rebounds versus the Spurs for his 12th double-double in the past 14 games.