9 p.m. Saturday at Portland • TV: FSN (830-AM)
Wolves-Portland gameday preview
December 21, 2019 at 6:40AM
Wolves update: The Wolves will be playing in their fourth set of back-to-back games this season, the third of which has involved travel. On the second of those games, they have a 1-2 record, their lone win coming Nov. 11 against Detroit, also a game that was played immediately after the Wolves played Denver. Karl-Anthony Towns' status is uncertain headed into Saturday after missing the past two games because of a knee injury. Gorgui Dieng has gotten the start each time Towns has been out this season and has averaged 13.7 points in three starts entering Friday.
Blazers update: They beat Orlando 118-103 on Friday night, but Carmelo Anthony left in the second quarter because of a bruised knee and didn't return. After reaching the Western conference finals a season ago, Portland has struggled to find a winning combination this season. Damian Lillard (26.5 points per game) and C.J. McCollum (22.0) are still putting up numbers, but the supporting cast around them isn't as effective this season. Jake Layman is now on the Wolves while Jusuf Nurkic is recovering from a leg fracture he suffered late last season. Portland also said goodbye to Evan Turner and acquired Anthony, who signed in mid-November. He was averaging 16.8 points but shooting just 42 percent.
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Naz Reid led the Wolves with 25 points off the bench, Anthony Edwards added 21, and Minnesota made sure Charlotte didn’t leave Target Center with another victory.
