Subscribe
Follow Us
The NBA regular season continues with games on Wednesday. The Minnesota Timberwolves will hit the road and face off against the Denver Nuggets. It's time to continue our NBA odds series and make a Timberwolves-Nuggets prediction and pick.
Both of these teams have had similar starts to the season. The Minnesota Timberwolves are 12-15 and are coming off their first win in six games. While the Denver Nuggets are 14-13 and have won their last two games. This should be a good game between two competitive teams.
Here are the odds for the Timberwolves-Nuggets Wednesday night NBA matchup, courtesy of FanDuel.
NBA Odds: Timberwolves-Nuggets Odds
*Watch NBA games LIVE with fuboTV (click for free trial)*
Minnesota Timberwolves: +4.5 (-105)
Denver Nuggets: -4.5 (-115)
Over: 223 (-110)
Under: 223 (-110)
Why The Timberwolves Could Cover The Spread
The Minnesota Timberwolves are having an underwhelming season. They started off pretty well but have lost their momentum and have shown signs of struggle. Through their first 27 games they have a losing record with 12 wins and 15 losses. They did manage to win their last game against the Trail Blazers by five. Prior to that win, however, the Wolves lost their last five games. Minnesota is looking to gain momentum and turn one win into two on Wednesday. If they can play as well as they did against Portland, then they could definitely pull off this upset.
The Timberwolves and Blazers were fairly even across most metrics. While Portland had the edge in shooting percentage, 45.7% vs 44.7%, Minnesota actually made more shots, 38 vs 37. Portland also made more threes than Minnesota 18 vs 14, but did so at a lower efficiency. Where the Timberwolves were able to gain some separation was in free throws. Minnesota went 26 for 32 from the stripe, while Portland only made 19 of 28 attempts. Rebounds, assists, and turnovers were all fairly even for these two teams. Minnesota had a solid performance against Portland, but they will need to step things up even more if they want to win on Wednesday.
Article Continues Below
While scoring was fairly evenly distributed among Minnesota's best players, the leader of the team in this game and every game is Karl-Anthony Towns. KAT is one of the best big men in the league, and had another solid game against the Blazers. Towns dropped 23 points and grabbed 10 rebounds in 35 minutes. Now that the whole roster is healthy the Timberwolves have the capability of being a very competitive team. If everyone can keep on playing solid basketball then the Wolves could definitely steal this win on the road.
Why The Nuggets Could Cover The Spread
The Denver Nuggets have also been somewhat disappointing this season. With injuries to Jamal Murray and Michael Porter Jr. many people have this season pegged as a wash for Denver. However, through their first 27 games they have managed to squeak out a winning record with 14 wins and 13 losses. The Nuggets have won their last two games, with their most recent victory coming against the Washington Wizards by six. Denver will try and carry that momentum into another tough match. This game will likely be a battle and the Nuggets definitely have what it takes to come out ahead.
The statistics of Denver's win over Washington were pretty even among both teams. The Wizards made more shots than the Nuggets, 41 vs 37, but did so at a lower efficiency, 45.6% vs 46.8%. Washington also had the edge in three pointers, making 12 of 34 attempts compared to the Nuggets who went 10 for 32 from beyond the arc. Where Denver really managed to put away the Wizards was from the free throw line. The Wizards shot 21 free throws and only made 13. The Nuggets, on the other hand, shot 33 free throws and made 29! This disparity is what cost Washington the game and allowed Denver to pull ahead. Denver also had the edge in rebounds, assists, and steals. If the Nuggets can mimic that performance then they should definitely get the win on Wednesday.
Leading the way for this Nuggets team is Nikola Jokic. Jokic is one of the most talented big men in the league, and he showed why against the Wizards. Jokic had 28 points, 19 rebounds and 9 assists. The big man took over in that game and led his team to victory. Jokic has been having a phenomenal season, averaging over 26 points, 14 rebounds, and 7 assists a game. If Jokic can have another big game on Wednesday then the Nuggets should be able to put away Minnesota with little resistance.
Final Timberwolves-Nuggets Prediction & Pick
This game is going to be a good one. Both of these teams need to start winning and will likely come out firing. The Timberwolves have been playing against some of the best teams in the league, while Denver has been playing against lower tier opponents. Minnesota has been battling and could end up winning this game on the road, and at the very least they should be able to cover. Pick the Timberwolves to cover.
FINAL TIMBERWOLVES-NUGGETS PREDICTION & PICK: Minnesota Timberwolves +4.5 (-105)
FINAL TIMBERWOLVES-NUGGETS SCORE PREDICTION: Timberwolves 109 – Nuggets 106
