NBA weekend lookahead: Stumbling Thunder have pair of winnable games

A look at what’s on tap this weekend in the NBA

Games to watch: Kings at Thunder, Friday; Thunder at Timberwolves, Saturday

After briefly losing their grip on the top spot in the Western Conference, the Thunder have moved back ahead of the Spurs, though it’s not because of any hot run of their own—over their last six games, the Thunder are 2-4, struggling on both ends of the floor. They hope their opponents this weekend snap them out of that funk.

The last time the Thunder saw the Kings, in Sacramento’s only nationally televised game back on February 9, the Kings took advantage—they forced 23 turnovers by Oklahoma City, and the Thunder blew an eight-point lead with just under six minutes to go in the game. The Thunder had, before that, dominated the Kings, with six straight wins against them.

If that loss stuck with the Thunder on the negative side of the ledger, the last time Oklahoma City faced the Timberwolves stands out on the positive side. Back on March 23, the two teams played one of the great regular-season games in recent memory—there were two overtimes, and the Thunder pulled out a thrilling 149-140 win. In that game, Kevin Love posted 51 points for the Timberwolves, shooting 16-for-27 from the field and 7-for-11 from the 3-point line. Love suffered a mild concussion in Minnesota’s game with the Nuggets on Wednesday and may not play on Saturday.

Ultimately, Oklahoma City’s duo of Kevin Durant and Russell Westbrook carried the day, as Durant scored 40 points and Westbrook had 45 to lead the win. That was, incredibly, the second time this season that Durant and Westbrook each scored 40 in the same game, and they are the only pair to achieve that feat twice in the same season—which last occurred at all back in 1996, when Chicago’s Michael Jordan and Scottie Pippen did it.

The Thunder have championship aspirations, and they’re the most talented team in the West. But they have not always played like it, and as we approach the playoffs, they need to get back to playing their best.

Player to watch: Dwight Howard, Orlando Magic
A tumultuous year for Howard is only getting tougher—now he is dealing with back spasms that he says will keep him out for Friday’s critical game against the Hawks. Orlando is deadlocked with the Hawks and Celtics at 34-24 for the Nos. 4-6 seeds in the East, and if the Magic finishes strong and winds up with the best record of the three, they would have homecourt advantage in the first round of the playoffs. The Magic hope Howard is back on the floor by Sunday’s game at Cleveland, because that’s pretty close to a must-win. After the Cavs, five of the Magic’s final six opponents are over .500 and competing for playoff positioning.