A look at three key numbers related to Tuesday’s game at the Smoothie King Center between Minnesota and New Orleans (7 p.m., Fox Sports New Orleans, WRNO 99.5 FM):
3: Combined No. 1 overall draft picks on the floor when Minnesota and New Orleans face off in Western Conference competition. Anthony Davis was the top choice of the 2012 draft, while Andrew Wiggins was No. 1 in 2014 and Karl-Anthony Towns went first last June. Wiggins and Towns are the youthful Timberwolves’ top two scorers, both at the tender age of 20. Davis leads the Pelicans in scoring, rebounding and blocks at just 22 years old and has already made two All-Star appearances.
8-8, 1-11: Respective starts to the regular season for Minnesota and New Orleans, two teams that have gone in different directions in recent weeks. After the Timberwolves’ surprising .500 start in the first month of the season, they’ve gone just 5-21. The Pelicans are 12-16 since dropping 11 of their first 12 games. New Orleans has also been much more competitive in its losses, with the three most recent defeats coming by a combined nine points.
21.7, 21.6:Assists per game for Minnesota and New Orleans this season, respectively. The Timberwolves and Pelicans are middle-of-the-pack teams in terms of creating baskets with the pass, ranking 15th and 16th among the league’s 30 teams. Alvin Gentry often notes the Pelicans’ assist numbers in assessing his team’s performance, with high numbers often leading to favorable outcomes. New Orleans had 27 and 29 in its most recent wins over Sacramento and Charlotte.
