Monday Wolves vs. Cavaliers, 7:00 p.m. FS North, 830 WCCO
Why you should be at Target Center:
Jimmy Butler vs. LeBron James.
That’s an enticing matchup.
Somehow, we are seeing peak LeBron at age 33. I wrote about him theNew Year’s
article, but he’s averaging 27.6 points (highest since 2009-10), 8.2 rebounds
and a career-high 9.1 assists per game this season. HOW IS THIS POSSIBLE?
James has the Cavaliers off to a 26-13 record, third in the East. Cleveland has
struggled a bit recently, though, losing five of its last six road games.
Meanwhile, Butler has the Wolves at 25-16 overall, on pace for 50 wins and
fourth in the Western Conference. Butler has straight-up changed the culture in
Minnesota. On the season, he’s averaging 21.5 points, 5.3 rebounds, 5.0 assists
and 1.9 steals. He’s coming off a crazy-good month of December in which he
averaged 26.5 points per game while shooting 50.6 percent from the field.
Jimmy Butler scores season-high 39 PTS in an OT win vs the Nuggets. He had 0 30
PT games in October & November. He has 6 in December, including 37, 38 & 39!
pic.twitter.com/WPLClqAtMz
We’ll see how much these two match up against each other, but if I had to guess,
Butler and James will guard each other, while Taj Gibson and Jae Crowder will go
at it.
Cleveland has plenty of other pieces to keep on eye on, too, like Dwyane Wade,
J.R. Smith, and that Kevin Love guy that Minnesota fans might be familiar with.
Opposing player I’ll be watching:
Isaiah Thomas will play in his third game of the season on Monday night after
missing the previous 36 with hip surgery. Thomas is the forgotten piece of the
Kyrie Irving deal which seems silly considering he scored 28 points per game
last season.
Thomas has played about 20 minutes per contest and has averaged 18 points per
game while shooting 13-for-25 from the field and 5-for-12 from deep. Thomas is a
great scorer, despite his size. He does stuff like this which seems normal, but
it’s not-so-normal when you consider he’s a half foot shorter than most of his
opponents.
Isaiah Thomas = Still getting tuff buckets in 2018 (via @Cavs)
pic.twitter.com/6KACNbc0BU
Minnesota’s Tyus Jones, who has been solid filling in for Jeff Teague, will
certainly have his hands full.
Injuries:
Cavs: Derrick Rose (ankle) is doubtful. Iman Shumpert (knee) is out.
Wolves: Point guard Jeff Teague is out.
Starting Lineups:
Cavs: PG – Thomas, SG – Smith, SF – Crowder, PF – James, C – Love
Wolves: PG – Jones, SG – Wiggins, SF – Butler, PF – Gibson, C – Towns
Player: Jimmy Butler
Player: Taj Gibson
Player: Tyus Jones
Player: Jeff Teague
Player: Karl-Anthony Towns
Player: Andrew Wiggins
Player: Jae Crowder
Player: LeBron James
Player: Kevin Love
Player: Derrick Rose
Player: Iman Shumpert
Player: JR Smith
Player: Isaiah Thomas
Media Content:
http://www.nba.com/timberwolves/scouting-report-wolves-cavaliers-1-8-2018
Media Keywords: NBA, Sports, Minnesota Timberwolves, Jimmy Butler, Taj Gibson,
Tyus Jones, Jeff Teague, Karl-Anthony Towns, Andrew Wiggins, Jae Crowder, LeBron
James, Kevin Love, Derrick Rose, Iman Shumpert, JR Smith, Isaiah Thomas,
Cleveland Cavaliers, Minnesota Timberwolves
Media Thumbnail:
http://i.cdn.turner.com/drp/nba/timberwolves/sites/default/files/sr-1-8-2018.jpg
Taxonomy: Scouting Report
Story Link:
http://www.nba.com/timberwolves/scouting-report-wolves-cavaliers-1-8-2018
