NBA Picks and Betting Tips: Portland Trail Blazers vs Minnesota Timberwolves Prediction 9th November
NLB Staff
08.11.2024 12:09
Blazers and Timberwolves
With the Portland Trail Blazers entering this as one of the NBA’s most quietly improving teams, they are going to face a Minnesota Timberwolves squad that has found consistency in their game with their rotations finally set. Given that the Trail Blazers have come off an 18-point victory against the Pelicans, they enter this game against a Timberwolves roster that has won 2 of their last 3 games. This match will take place on November 9th at 7:30 A.M. IST in Target Center, Minneapolis. Below are our betting odds, top player props, recent head-to-head matchups, and public trends to create a potential outcome for this game.
Blazers vs Timberwolves Key Betting Tips & Predictions
1. Portland Trail Blazers vs Minnesota Timberwolves Moneyline Pick
Entering this game, the Minnesota Timberwolves should dominate the -504 money line. As Minnesota’s intensity will be key in this game, they will be able to handle the Blazers on defense with ease and use defensive prowess to make it a little more of a blowout. With Anthony Edwards and Mike Conley creating a great pass/shoot combo, it will be too much for Scoot Henderson to handle himself. Even though Rudy Gobert struggles on offense to the Timberwolves inside, he will control De’Andre Ayton once again and should score multiple easy shots on him. A Blazers team that struggles with perimeter defense and has lost four straight money lines against Minnesota, the -504 moneyline is worth taking here.
2. Portland Trail Blazers vs Minnesota Timberwolves Point Spread Pick
Heading into this game, the Timberwolves are -10.5 favorites and should continue being taken as that. After having some great offensive performances, Anthony Edwards has found his rhythm and should be able to take Toumani Camara or Anferee Simmons to the rim. Seeing that they both struggle on defense, Donte DiVincenzo should have a big game on the bench and provide great balance. As Rudy Gobert creates a mismatch on De’Andre Ayton, this should be a game where he can pick up multiple rebounds and blocks to create extra opportunities for his wings to fire away. With Naz Reid continuing to prove to be one of the best three-point shooting big men in this league, he and Jaden McDaniels on opposite sides is a dangerous combo for either Jerami Grant or Toumani Camara to guard. Seeing this, the Timberwolves should control the game on both ends and win with ease, making the -10.5 spread perfect.
3. Portland Trail Blazers vs Minnesota Timberwolves Over/Under Pick (Total Points)
As the combined points in this game will go over 229.5 points, one of the key reasons is due to both teams' continued success on offense. Even though the Timberwolves possess a great defensive center and forwards, Portland’s three-pointing shooting and paint scoring have kept them in most games this season. Even though there may be a few struggles here in there with their point guard and center, both their wings should have phenomenal nights from three. Similarly, the Timberwolves have one of the best shooting guards and power forwards in the league scoring-wise, giving their bench a lot of room to continue knocking down perimeter shots as well. With the previous combined score at 219, this should be way higher with improvement on both team’s scoring ends.
Portland Trail Blazers vs Minnesota Timberwolves Top Player Props
Scoot Henderson Over 9.5 points at 1.87: As the Blazers will once again be led by their athletic guard at the point, his ability to outrun defenders can be key. Even though Mike Conley will be a threat to stop him, he will still have a couple of drives against him and should destroy Nickeil-Alexander Walker with agility. Given that he is averaging 12.2 points a game, he should be able to knock down a couple of threes in this game and have some close looks at the rim making the score go near his season average.
Donte DiVincenzo Over 10.5 points at 1.90: Given that Anthony Edwards will be the starting shooting guard when he is put with DiVincenzo as the Timberwolves decide to play small ball, the former Knick will have an easy advantage against Dalano Banton. Coming off the bench, he has been a big threat from three this year and one of their core pieces to keep this second unit up. With him averaging 10.4 points a night, he should score more in this game as the Blazers are by far the weakest defense he has faced this season.
Portland Trail Blazers vs Minnesota Timberwolves Injury News & Impact
Portland Trail Blazers Injuries: As Portland will be without their two shooting guards who complement each other well, the defensive-minded Matisse Thybulle will miss this game due to a knee issue while scoring machine Shaedeon Sharpe could potentially not play. With Sharpe, 15.9 points per game last season, not being a great backcourt piece, this team will have to rely on Anfernee Simmons and Scoot Henderson to carry the load again.
Minnesota Timberwolves Injuries: Look at the current Timberwolves roster, they aren’t missing anyone at the moment and should continue being able to play at full form in this matchup.
Blazers vs Timberwolves Head-to-Head Trends
As the Timberwolves have currently owned this matchup by beating the Blazers 4 straight times, the trend should continue. With these being dominant wins and in a fashion where Minnesota showed strength on both ends, each game has been a difference of at least 12 points. Seeing that along with the fact that Minnesota has scored over 100 every time, their 4-0 record against the spread vs Portland should get stronger. Also, the Timberwolves averaging 122.6 points against the Trail Blazers in the past 3 head-to-heads means they should score a lot more in this game as well.
Betting Insights & Public Trends
Seeing the insights and trends for this matchup, the Minnesota Timberwolves have 85.8% of bettors choosing them to beat Portland.
Blazers vs Timberwolves Final Prediction
With the Minnesota Timberwolves entering this game as one of the top candidates to make a deep playoff run, they should be able to control an up-and-coming Blazers team quite easily. As Anthony Edwards continues to be one of the most dominating factors on this Timberwolves squad, his ability to create any type of shot shows his development as a playmaker. Although he started the season struggling a bit on defense, he has come into his own and should be able to control Anfernee Simmons's offensive game. Given that Scoot Henderson will be up top, he will be able to manage Mike Conley’s threes but can struggle when the Timberwolves point guard continues using pin-point accuracy to find corner shooters. Seeing that Toumani Camara could start at the small forward position, his size can help the Blazers be competitive against an elite defender like Jaden McDaniels. But, the biggest issue with this is that McDaniels has incredible length and will be able to close out on many of Camara’s shots while also switching on a bigger body like Jermai Grant. Although that is true, if Grant gets a mismatch on Julius Randle, the Blazers can win the power forward battle which could end up changing the big-man game a little bit. As De’Andre Ayton is in the middle on one end, his lack of impact on defense could help Gobert have a lot of dunks at his height. With someone like Ayton only having an offensive arsenal, a defender like Gobert should have multiple blocks in this game and create many extra opportunities for the Timberwolves. The only way Portland can keep this game somewhat close is if Scoot Henderson and Anfernee Simmons can provide a lot of shots from deep.
Our prediction: The Minnesota Timberwolves win and cover their -10.5 spread, while the score goes over 229.5 points.
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