The Los Angeles Lakers have managed to pick up a SU victory in each of their last 20 games against the Minnesota Timberwolves as those teams meet in NBA betting action on Thursday night.
The Lakers, though, are only 11-8-1 ATS over those 20 contests, with Minnesota managing to cover the posted spread at the sportsbooks in two of their past three meetings. The OVER/UNDER has gone 5-1 for totals bettors in their last six matchups.
Los Angeles will face the 20-34 Timberwolves, who own a 25-28-1 ATS mark on the season. (Note: follow us on Twitter for line updates and injuries news). In totals betting, the Lakers are 30-27-1 favoring the UNDER so far this season while the Timberwolves are 26-27-1 favoring the OVER.
View Minnesota vs LA Lakers Odds and Stats.
Power Rankings / Prediction:
This game matches up the No. 11 (Lakers) and the No. 21 (Timberwolves) teams in the league, according to our current NBA Power Rankings at Odds Shark. A 100-97 result in favor of the Lakers is predicted by handicapping models.
How They Match Up:
Offensively, the game matches up Los Angeles's No. 6-ranked offense (102.1 PPG) against a Timberwolves defense that ranks No. 14 at 97.4 PPG. The Lakers have averaged 46% from the field per game, more than the Timberwolves have managed so far this season (43.5% on average).
Defensively, the Timberwolves feature the league's No. 17-rated defense on the road, giving up 100.4 points per game. Los Angeles, meanwhile, comes in at No. 8 in the league in scoring at home.
Minnesota lost its last outing, an 84-83 result against the Suns on February 26. The Timberwolves covered in that game as a 1.5-point underdog, while the 167 combined points took the game UNDER the total. Derrick Williams poured in 21 points and chipped in with 12 rebounds in a losing cause for Minnesota on Tuesday, as the Suns rolled to an 84-83 victory over Minnesota at US Airways Center.
The Lakers were a 119-108 loser in their most recent outing on the road against the Nuggets. They failed to cover the 6.5-point spread as underdogs, while the total score (227) made winners of OVER bettors. Kobe Bryant scored 29 points for Los Angeles on Monday, but the Nuggets managed a 119-108 victory over the Lakers at Pepsi Center.
Minnesota Timberwolves Trends:
When playing on Thursday are 4-6
Before playing Portland are 3-7
After playing Phoenix are 3-7
After a loss are 3-7
Los Angeles Lakers Trends:
When playing on Thursday are 5-5
Before playing Atlanta are 6-4
After playing Denver are 4-6
After a loss are 6-4
A few Timberwolves at Lakers trends to consider:
The total has gone OVER in 5 of Minnesota's last 6 games when playing LA Lakers
The total has gone UNDER in 5 of Minnesota's last 6 games
The total has gone UNDER in 7 of Minnesota's last 9 games when playing on the road against LA Lakers
The total has gone OVER in 6 of Minnesota's last 8 games on the road
LA Lakers are 5-0 SU in their last 5 games when playing at home against Minnesota
LA Lakers are 5-0 SU in their last 5 games when playing Minnesota
LA Lakers are 6-1 SU in their last 7 games at home
The total has gone OVER in 5 of the LA Lakers last 6 games when playing Minnesota
Next up:
Minnesota at Portland, Saturday, March 2
LA Lakers home to Atlanta, Sunday, March 3
