NBA Game Preview - Miami at Minnesota

Sun Oct 27, 2019 7:00 PM EDT

Unicorns, which in NBA parlance means a player with center size and guard skills, are supposed to be rare. But the Miami Heat on Sunday will be facing their second such creature in 24 hours.

On Saturday night, the Heat beat Giannis "The Greek Freak" Antetokounmpo and his Milwaukee Bucks 131-126 in overtime. The 6-foot-11 Greek Freak had 29 points, 17 rebounds and nine assists, and might have done even more damage had he not fouled out in the extra session.

On Sunday, the Heat will visit the Minnesota Timberwolves. The Wolves are led by 7-footer Karl-Anthony Towns, who in two games is averaging 36.5 points, 14.5 rebounds, 5.5 assists, 3.5 steals and 2.5 blocks.

Heat center Bam Adebayo, who had 19 points, 13 rebounds and eight assists on Saturday, will likely get the assignment to check Towns in Minnesota's home opener for 2019-2020.

Adebayo was a key factor in the Heat's comeback from a 21-point first-half deficit on Saturday.

"At halftime, we talked to each other and said, 'We've got to do this,'" Adebayo said afterward. "We just made effort plays."

Sunday's game is likely the last one before Heat forward Jimmy Butler returns to the team. He has yet to make his Heat debut after the organization made a big splash in acquiring him this past offseason. But Butler, who is on paternity leave, has surely noticed the Heat's 2-0 start without him.

"He knows the role he is stepping into," Adebayo said. "He knows how we play and what this Heat culture is about. We are showing him, and we can't wait until he gets back."

Meanwhile, the Timberwolves, who are also off to a 2-0 start, believe they are building a solid culture this season.

Ironically, it was Butler who caused much of the melodrama in the Twin Cities last season, forcing the T-Wolves to trade him by indicating he would not re-sign with the team after the final year of his contract.

That's how Butler -- with a stop in Philadelphia for the 76ers -- ended up in Miami, and the T-Wolves have moved on with Towns, Andrew Wiggins and a bunch of role players.

"This is a special group," Towns said of the 2019-2020 version of the T-Wolves. "Everyone is here for one goal, and that's to win."

Part of the reason there's a good vibe on the T-Wolves is because of Ryan Saunders, who is in his first full year as their coach. He is the son of the late Flip Saunders, who was the most successful coach in franchise history.

But Ryan Saunders also offers a positive vibe after the abrasive Tom Thibodeau was fired in February following the team's 19-21 start. Saunders slid over from the assistant coach's chair and is now running the team at age 33.

The key to the team, of course, is Towns, but it's also Wiggins, who is averaging 18.5 points and needs to become a viable second star for the T-Wolves to become a playoff contender.

Since 2004, Minnesota has made the postseason just once -- in 2018 -- and T-Wolves fans are waiting for Wiggins to play up to his draft status (first overall in 2014) and contract ($122 million over the next four years).

Another interesting player to watch on Sunday will be reserve point guard Shabazz Napier, who made his NBA debut with Miami in 2014. Even though he plays behind Jeff Teague, Napier leads the team with 8.0 assists per game.

In fact, on a per-36-minutes basis, Napier is averaging 13.7 assists and just 2.6 turnovers.

--Field Level Media