Minnesota Timberwolves (53-23, first in the Western Conference) vs. Phoenix Suns (45-31, sixth in the Western Conference)
Phoenix; Friday, 10 p.m. EDT
BOTTOM LINE: Phoenix takes on the Minnesota Timberwolves after Devin Booker scored 40 points in the Phoenix Suns' 122-101 win against the Cleveland Cavaliers.
The Suns are 25-21 in Western Conference games. Phoenix ranks seventh in the league with 34.1 defensive rebounds per game led by Jusuf Nurkic averaging 8.0.
The Timberwolves are 36-12 in Western Conference play. Minnesota averages 113.1 points while outscoring opponents by 7.1 points per game.
The Suns make 49.5% of their shots from the field this season, which is 4.9 percentage points higher than the Timberwolves have allowed to their opponents (44.6%). The Timberwolves average 113.1 points per game, 0.8 fewer than the 113.9 the Suns allow to opponents.
The teams play for the second time this season. In the last matchup on Nov. 16 the Suns won 133-115 led by 31 points from Kevin Durant, while Karl-Anthony Towns scored 25 points for the Timberwolves.
TOP PERFORMERS: Durant is averaging 27.5 points, 6.7 rebounds and 5.2 assists for the Suns. Booker is averaging 2.9 made 3-pointers over the last 10 games.
Anthony Edwards is scoring 26.1 points per game and averaging 5.5 rebounds for the Timberwolves. Naz Reid is averaging 2.8 made 3-pointers over the last 10 games.
LAST 10 GAMES: Suns: 7-3, averaging 116.5 points, 45.7 rebounds, 31.1 assists, 6.4 steals and 6.4 blocks per game while shooting 51.2% from the field. Their opponents have averaged 110.0 points per game.
Timberwolves: 8-2, averaging 112.7 points, 41.1 rebounds, 29.0 assists, 9.6 steals and 6.1 blocks per game while shooting 49.2% from the field. Their opponents have averaged 100.9 points.
INJURIES: Suns: Grayson Allen: out (hip), Damion Lee: out (knee).
Timberwolves: Jaylen Clark: out (achilles), Karl-Anthony Towns: out (knee), Mike Conley: out (rest).
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The Associated Press created this story using technology provided by Data Skrive and data from Sportradar.
