Game Preview: San Antonio Spurs at Minnesota Timberwolves
Today at 03:00 AM
The Spurs finish up their road trip with a matchup with the tough T-Wolves
On Friday, the San Antonio Spurs suffered a tough loss against a motivated Sacramento Kings squad. Now, after traveling across time zones they'll match up with one of the best defenses in the league, and a team that will specifically be a tough match-up for them: the Minnesota Timberwolves.
The Wolves are 6th in the NBA in defensive rating and have the size to punish the Spurs. With Rudy Gobert, Julius Randle and Naz Reid, Minnesota will be a lot to handle for San Antonio with Charles Bassey missing another game, and Victor Wembanyama missing the rest of the season. That's not even accounting for Anthony Edwards, who is having a great season, averaging 27.2 points, 6 rebounds, and 4.6 assists while knocking down 40.6% of his threes.
Minnesota has a 2-1 season series lead over the Spurs and has won the last two games against San Antonio. The Spurs will lean on the success of their rookie guard, Stephon Castle, who has firmly established a lead for Rookie of the Year with his recent play.
San Antonio Spurs (26-35) at Minnesota Timberwolves (36-29)
March 9th, 2025 | 5 PM CT
Watch: FanDuel Southwest | Listen: WOAI (1200 AM)
Spurs Injuries: Charles Bassey – Out (knee), David Duke Jr. – Out (G League), Harrison Ingram – Out (G League), Riley Minix – Out (G League), Victor Wembanyama – Out (shoulder)
Timberwolves Injuries: Luka Garza – Questionable (ankle), Rudy Gobert – Questionable (back)
What to watch for:
Controlling the glass
The Spurs have struggled to win the rebounding battle since Wembanyama and Bassey went down. Minnesota represents challenges inside with its size. Despite that clear advantage, the Wolves aren't an excellent rebounding team. They are 18th in the NBA in rebounding and allow their opponents to grab the 13th most rebounds in the NBA. Even with a clear size disadvantage, the Spurs can still compete on the glass and stay in this game.
Backcourt production
The Spurs starting backcourt of De'Aaron Fox and Chris Paul struggled against the Kings. Their saving grace was Castle's 25 points off the bench. They'll need more from their guards against a tough Minnesota defense. Castle has scored just 5 points against the Wolves in three games this season. His improved play could give them a chance on Sunday.
Bench scoring
Castle has been the highlight of the Spurs bench production lately, but the play of Keldon Johnson and Jeremy Sochan shouldn't go unnoticed. Those two will be key against the Wolves on Sunday. Sochan's effort on the interior will be crucial against the big and tough T-Wolves. An extra scoring punch from Johnson off the bench would help a Spurs team struggling to find consistent offense right now.
