Thursday, October 30, 2014 at 8:00 PM

Target Center in Minneapolis

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The Detroit Pistons and the Minnesota Timberwolves will compete tonight in their second game of the season. Fans will see how the players are conditioned considering both teams played games last night. Pistons’ player Kentavious Caldwell-Pope (KCP), recovering from an injured knee, looked healthy at the end of preseason. He was seen flying around the court in practice and even dunked on a teammate. His teammates think his is ready to be an impact player at the beginning stages of this season. Pistons coach Stan Van Gundy wants KCP and the rest of the team to be defensively focused. Gundy is known to stress the importance of defense. He believes teams can only make a playoff run if they are one of the top 10 defensive teams.

The Timberwolves will test the Pistons defensive ability as a team with a 5 – 2 preseason record. Flip Sanders is considering a different rotation strategy in his second year as a Timberwolves head coach. In the past, Sanders ran an 8 man rotation, but his current roster may demand a 10+ man rotation. He is pleased with veteran leader Mo Williams’ ability to give the team a boost coming off the bench. The team has 6 players with 2 years or less NBA experience. Williams is expected to continue to be a mentor for his young teammates. Glenn Robinson has been a standout player in Flip Sanders mind. He has plenty of developing to do, but has great potential.

Injuries to Watch

Detroit Pistons

10/29/14 C Greg Monroe Suspension expected to miss 2 games
10/27/14 G Kentavious Caldwell-Pope Knee is upgraded to probable Wednesday vs. Denver
10/25/14 F Luigi Datome Knee "?" Wednesday vs. Denver
10/24/14 G Brandon Jennings Achilles probable Wednesday vs. Denver
10/24/14 G Jodie Meeks Back out indefinitely

Minnesota Timberwolves

10/25/14 G/F Andrew Wiggins Back probable Wednesday vs. Memphis
10/25/14 G Shabazz Muhammad Heel probable Wednesday vs. Memphis

Josh's Pick: Take Minnesota

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