The Toronto Raptors and Minnesota Timberwolves are both breathing a sigh of relief going into their matchup against each other because both teams will have their best player on court despite lingering injuries.
The Raptors are making Ingram available despite popping up on the entry report with a thumb sprain. Meanwhile, Edwards is active despite dealing with a foot injury.
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Ingram, Edwards Available For Raptors vs. Wolves
Toronto Raptors forward Brandon Ingram defends against New York Knicks guard Jose Alvarado. | John E. Sokolowski-Imagn Images
With both star players available, each team should be bringing their A-game against the other. Both teams are in the thick of things in their respective conferences playoff pictures, so they need to do whatever it takes to pull out a win.
Three of the last four games to play off caliber teams, and they need to get the monkey off their back. It will be a lot easier to do that with Ingram in the lineup, but a fair share of challenges come with Edwards also on the court.
In the last minute of the 22nd game, Edwards scored 30 points on 11 of 22 shooting with eight rebounds. Meanwhile, Ingram also had a strong performance with 25 points on 10 of 22 shooting. The two should be in for another good battle in the rematch.
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Neither team is fully healthy as there are a few players ruled out on each side. The Wolves won’t have veterans for Joe Ingles in the game due to personal reasons, though he has only appeared in 20 games for the team this season, mostly in garbage time.
The Raptors won’t have rookie forward Collin Murray-Boyles, who is dealing with a thumb sprain of his own. This injury has plagued the No. 9 overall pick throughout the season and the team feels he is not ready to play on the court. The Raptors need him for a playoff run, so keeping him on the sidelines now to prepare for what’s coming isn’t necessarily the worst thing in the world.
That being said, this is an important game for the Raptors and they need to keep pace in the Eastern Conference, so grabbing a win against the Wolves is key.
Tip-off between the Raptors and Wolves is scheduled for 8:00 p.m. ET inside the Target Center in Minneapolis. Fans can watch the game on Sportsnet or stream it on NBA League Pass.
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This article was originally published on www.si.com/nba/raptors/onsi as Brandon Ingram, Anthony Edwards Status Revealed For Raptors vs. Timberwolves.