San Antonio Spurs began their regular season with a win against the Minnesota Timberwolves, 107-99. For these past two seasons, LaMarcus Aldridge was unhappy with San Antonio Spurs and Gregg Popovich knows the reason why. In an interview with the CBS Sports, Popovich shared on Aldridge's struggle that the player was no longer comfortable and its 98.75 percent on him. He added that he tried to change him into a different player and that affected Aldridge's ability to feel confident and comfortable on the court. The Spurs need Marcus Aldridge to feel at ease with his team especially now that Tony Parker and Leonard are out due to injuries.
However, even without them, the Spurs proved they had enough to hold off the Minnesota Timberwolves. The Spurs performed with a total of 46.1 percent field goals, 38.1 percent in the 3 point range and 89.5 percent free throws against the Timberwolves with 43.5 percent total field goals, 42.1 percent 3 point shots and 73.9 percent free throws.
LaMarcus Aldridge's double-double led Spurs to win
Aldridge contributed 25 points, ten rebounds, four assists and two personal fouls in 38 minutes during Wednesday night's victory against the Timberwolves. He was followed by Danny Green with a score of 17 points, four rebounds, two assists and two personal fouls. Likewise, Dejounte Murray scored 16 points, four rebounds, two assists and two personal fouls.
Coach Popovich contract extension worth $72.3 million with Aldridge means that he expects the big man to produce points for the team especially now that All-Star player Kawhi Leonard is not around. There is still no definite timetable set for his return so, in the meantime, the team has got to rely on Aldridge's productivity.
Despite the loss, Andrew Wiggins scored 26 points
Wiggins garnered an impressive 26 points, five rebounds, and one assist in 30 minutes despite the 107-99 loss against the Spurs. Karl-Anthony Towns followed with 18 points, thirteen rebounds, one assist and four personal fouls alongside Jimmy Butler scoring 12 points, four rebounds, three assists and three personal fouls.
Wiggins signed a $148 million five-year extension contract with Timberwolves making him a fourth-year veteran to lead the team offensively. In his final 17 games last season, he never scored 15 points below and averaged 25.6 Points Per Game. Since the debut of his career in Minneapolis, he has been increasing his stats from 2014 with 16.3 points per game to a career-high 23.6 per game in 2016.
