INJURY REPORTS AT 5:30 P.M. SATURDAY
Minnesota Timberwolves Crabbe, Allen Questionable Injury/Illness – Illness; Illness
Layman, Jake Out Injury/Illness – Left Toe; Sprain
Martin, Kelan Out G League – Two-Way
Nowell, Jaylen Out G League – On Assignment
Towns, Karl-Anthony Available Injury/Illness – Left Knee; Sprain
Toronto Raptors Brissett, Oshae Out G League – Two-Way
Hernandez, Dewan Out Injury/Illness – Right Ankle; Sprain
VanVleet, Fred Questionable Injury/Illness – Right Hamstring; Strain
Watson, Paul Out G League – Two-Way
RAPTOR NOTES
• The Toronto Raptors play the second game of a back-to-back set Saturday night when they face the Minnesota Timberwolves at Target Center. Toronto has won three straight meetings against the Timberwolves. The Raptors finished the first half of their season with a 27–14 record, the sixth straight season in which Toronto won 25 or more of its first 41 games. No other NBA team has done that in each of the past six seasons. The Raptors did not begin any season in that fashion before 2014–15.
• The Raptors beat the Wizards 140-111 on Friday, matching the franchise record for points in a game. Toronto also scored 140 points in a double-overtime win at Washington on Jan. 13, 2019. Friday was the
most points the Raptors have ever scored in regulation.
• Toronto made a franchise record 22 3-point field goals Friday vs. Washington. Toronto made 22-of-43 attempts (.512) from beyond the arc. Marc Gasol scored a season-high 20 and matched his career high with six 3-pointers against the Wizards, while Norman Powell added 28 points and made four 3s.
• Kyle Lowry needs just 29 assists to tie Jose Calderon (3,770) as the Raptors’ all-time leader in assists.
Lowry is already the franchise leader in three-point field goals (1,316) and steals (782). Lowry has recorded 10+ assists 112 times – second most in team history behind only Calderon (141).
• Kyle Lowry has dished out five or more assists in each of his 30 games this season, the longest single-season streak of that kind in his career. The only other players who had at least five assists in 30 straight
games within a season for the Raptors are Damon Stoudamire (40-game streak in 1995–96) and Jose
Calderon (44-game streak in 2010–11).
• Pascal Siakam moved up to second among all Eastern Conference front-court players in the third fan returns of NBA All-Star voting. Siakam is looking to become the seventh player in franchise history to earn an
All-Star selection, joining Vince Carter (5X), Chris Bosh (5X), Kyle Lowry (5X), DeMar DeRozan (4X), Kawhi Leonard and Antonio Davis. The Raptors have had one player selected as a starter for the All-Star
Game each of the past five seasons; Leonard – 2019, DeRozan – 2018, 2017 and Lowry – 2016, 2015.
• The Raptors matched their season-high with 16 steals Friday night vs. Washington. Toronto forced the Wizards into an opponent season-high 28 turnovers which led to 30 points. The Raptors have 29 steals over the past two games (Jan. 15-17) and currently rank fifth in the NBA in steals per game (8.5).
• Toronto outscored Washington 34-19 in fast-break points Friday, including 16-2 in the first quarter. The Raptors are averaging 17.9 fast break points this season, third-best in the NBA.
• Norman Powell has three consecutive 20-point performances (Jan. 12-17) since returning from a left shoulder injury. Powell is averaging 23.7 points and is shooting .643 (27-42) from the floor and .550 (11-20) from three-point range during this stretch.
• Rookie Terence Davis ll tied a career high with 23 points in 24 minutes off the bench Jan. 17 vs. Washington. Davis is shooting .403 (54-134) from beyond the arc this season, which ranks fifth among NBA rookies. Davis II currently leads all rookies in +/- rating (+219).
PROBABLE STARTERS
F – PASCAL SIAKAM #43
MIN: 35.8 REB: 7.6 AST: 3.6 STL: 1.0 TO: 2.6 BLK: 0.9 PTS: 24.2
• Tallied 12 points, two rebounds, three assists and two steals in 25 minutes Jan. 17 vs. Washington.
• Ranks 15th in the NBA in scoring (24.2) and sixth in minutes per game (35.8).
• Has scored 30+ points 10 times; had five 30-point performances in 80 games played last season.
F – SERGE IBAKA #9
MIN: 26.6 REB: 8.5 AST: 1.2 STL: 0.4 TO: 2.1 BLK: 0.9 PTS: 15.1
• Contributed 15 points and a team-high eight rebounds in 26 minutes Jan. 17 vs. Washington.
• Averaging 17.6 points, 9.9 rebounds and 31.7 minutes in 14 games as a starter.
• Shooting .544 (56-103) from the field and .471 (8-17) from three-point range through seven games in January.
C – MARC GASOL #33
MIN: 28.4 REB: 6.6 AST: 3.6 STL: 0.9 TO: 1.3 BLK: 1.1 PTS: 7.3
• Scored a season-high 20 points and tied a career high with six made threes Jan. 17 vs. Washington.
• Averaging 17.5 points, 5.5 rebounds and 30.3 minutes in two games (Jan. 15-17) since returning to the lineup.
• Missed 12 games (Dec. 20 – Jan. 12) due to a left hamstring strain injury sustained Dec. 18 at Detroit.
G – OG ANUNOBY #3
MIN: 30.1 REB: 5.8 AST: 1.7 STL: 1.2 TO: 1.3 BLK: 0.7 PTS: 11.4
• Finished with 18 points, six rebounds and four steals in 26 minutes Jan. 17 vs. Washington.
• Toronto is 18-4 this season when Anunoby scores 10 or more points.
• Shooting a career-best .504 (183-363) from the field, including .535 (38-71) through seven games in January.
G – KYLE LOWRY #7
MIN: 37.7 REB: 4.5 AST: 7.8 STL: 1.2 TO: 3.0 BLK: 0.4 PTS: 20.2
• Recorded 11 points, a team-high eight assists and three rebounds in 22 minutes Jan. 17 vs. Washington.
• Ranks sixth in the NBA in assist per game (7.8); averaging 10.0 assists over the last five games (Jan. 7-17).
• Has made at least two three-pointers in 17 straight games (Dec. 14 – Jan. 17); totaled 56 threes during this span.
INJURY REPORT
Dewan Hernandez (Right ankle; sprain) – Out
Fred VanVleet (Right hamstring; strain) – Questionable
Timberwolves Last Game Starters:
Pos. No. Player Ht. Wt. 2019-20 Averages
F – 22 Andrew Wiggins 6-8 194 22.7 pts (43.9%), 4.9 reb, 3.3 ast
F – 33 Robert Covington 6-8 211 13.2 pts (43.6%), 5.9 reb, 1.2 ast
C – 32 Karl-Anthony Towns 7-0 248 26.5 pts (50.9%), 11.4 reb, 4.3 ast
G – 23 Jarrett Culver 6-7 195 9.5 pts (39.4%), 3.7 reb, 2.0 ast
G – 13 Shabazz Napier 6-1 175 9.5 pts (38.7%), 2.5 reb, 4.5 ast
Status Report:
Guard Allen Crabbe: Is listed as questionable with an illness.
Forward Jake Layman: Has missed the last 27 games with a left toe sprain. He is listed as out for
tonight’s game against the Raptors.
Recent Transactions:
Jan 16: Acquired guard Allen Crabbe from the Atlanta Hawks in exchange for guards Treveon
Graham and Jeff Teague.
Jan. 3: Assigned guard Jaylen Nowell to Iowa (G League).
Jan. 1: Recalled guard Jaylen Nowell from Iowa (G League).
Dec. 30: Recalled center Naz Reid from Iowa (G League).
Dec. 27: Assigned guard Jaylen Nowell and center Naz Reid to Iowa (G League).
Dec. 23: Recalled center Naz Reid and transferred two-way players Kelan Martin and Jordan
McLaughlin from Iowa (G League).
Dec. 20: Recalled guard Jaylen Nowell from Iowa (G League).
Dec. 17: Assigned guard Jaylen Nowell and center Naz Reid and transferred two-way player
Kelan Martin to Iowa (G League).
Dec. 16: Recalled guard Jaylen Nowell and center Naz Reid and transferred two-way player
Kelan Martin from Iowa (G League).
Dec. 12: Assigned center Naz Reid to Iowa (G League)
The view from left field 