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Still trying to separate themselves from the Cavs and Hawks, the home loss versus the Boston Celtics was a significant setback for the Magic last week. Thus, the team around Vince Carter and Dwight Howard will make their way to Minnesota to take on the Minnesota Timberwolves on Friday at 1 a.m. GMT.

Considering that the Wolves started the season with a disappointing 3-18 record, winning four out of ten certainly is an improvement. One key factor in Minnesota’s recent upswing has been the return of forward Kevin Love who missed the opening month with a broken hand. In 13 appearances, Love averaged 14.6 points, 12.9 rebounds and 2.4 assists in just 31 minutes per contest. Likewise, franchise cornerstone Al Jefferson appears to have found his rhythm and put up 17.1 points, 9.0 rebounds and 2.0 assists thus far. That said, Minnesota is still lacking consistent scoring across the board and is at the bottom of the league with just 94 points per night. Similarly, the Wolves’ defense has been mediocre at best, allowing their opponents to score 105 points per game.

The Magic on the other hand got off to a pretty good start and rallied to a 22-8 record, currently tied with the Atlanta Hawks and Cleveland Cavaliers for the second place in the Eastern Conference. As impressive as that might be, there is no doubt that Orlando Magic was hoping to make it all the way to the top when they acquired Vince Carter, Ryan Anderson and Brandon Bass during the off-season. That said, Stan van Gundy’s squad is trailing the Celtics by just two games and has plenty of time to catch up. Offensively, All-Star Vince Carter led the Magic, putting up 18.9 points, 5.1 rebounds and 3.1 assists per game. Given Orlando’s individual talent and unselfish ball movement, Dwight Howard and company will enter their encounter with the Timberwolves as undisputed favorites to clinch a win at Bradley Center on Saturday. Even though Minnesota showed some positive signs as of late, it is highly unlikely that they will be able to beat one of the best teams in the league.

You can watch all games of the Orlando Magic and Minnesota Timberwolves right here on www.watchlivenba.com, the home of NBA live streaming.