Our coverage of Sunday's NBA slate will begin with a prediction and pick from the Twin Cities. The Portland Trail Blazers (32-45) will make the road trip to face off against the Minnesota Timberwolves (39-39). At 1-2 on the season series, Minnesota will look to even things up. Check out our NBA odds series for our Trail Blazers-Timberwolves prediction and pick.
The Portland Trail Blazers are currently are in 13th-place in the Eastern Conference and will need a miracle to make the playoffs at this point. They've been plagued by a ton of injuries this season and have mailed it in, going just 1-11 in their last 12 games. They'll be short-handed in trying to avoid six-straight losses tonight.
The Minnesota Timberwolves are currently in ninth-place in the East and were just overtaken by the Lakers in the standings. They'll have a tight race as they're separated from sixth-place by just two games. They were able to pick up a crucial four consecutive wins recently, but will be coming into this one off two-straight losses.
Here are the Trail Blazers-Timberwolves NBA odds, courtesy of FanDuel
NBA Odds: Trail Blazers-Timberwolves Odds
Portland Trail Blazers: +17 (-108)
Minnesota Timberwolves: -17 (-112)
Over: 224.5 (-110)
Under: 224.5 (-110)
How To Watch Trail Blazers vs. Timberwolves
TV: Regional Coverage
Stream: NBA League Pass, fuboTV
Time: 3:30 p.m. ET/ 12:30 p.m. PT
*Watch NBA games LIVE with fuboTV (click for a free trial)*
Why The Trail Blazers Could Cover The Spread
Portland is having a rough-go right now and would like to see the season end as soon as possible. They haven't had the same success with their new-look squad and haven't been able to stay healthy. They'll be extremely short-handed for this one, which explains the massive point spread. Their injuries are as follows: Jerami Grant, Keon Johnson, Damian Lillard, Nassir Little, Jusuf Nurkic, Anfernee Simons. Cam Reddish remains questionable as one of the only starters possibly available. Portland will have to dig deep into their bench and activate players like Jeenathan Williams for this one.
The Trail Blazers can win this game by playing unselfishly as a team. A lot of young prospects will be getting a chance to showcase skills in this game, so it could be a good opportunity for some guys to earn their minutes in NBA game time. If they're able to pass the ball efficiency and limit the turnovers, they could find someone with a hot hand early. 17 points is a ton to cover, so Portland will have a lot to work with if they can see some shots fall down.
Why The Timberwolves Could Cover The Spread
The Timberwolves will have to be diligent in their last few games as they hope to hold on to the edge of playoff contention. They're being given a gift here with what should be an easy win over an injured Portland team. The Timberwolves won't be completely healthy themselves as a number of their key players are not 100%. Anthony Edwards, Karl-Anthony Towns, Austin Rivers, and Jaylen Nowell all remain ‘questionable' for this one. If either KAT or Ant can suit up here, the Timberwolves will have enough firepower to win this game and cover.
Minnesota has been a good home team this year at 21-18 and they've gone 18-21 ATS in those games. While they're 4-2 SU in their last six games, they've gone just 1-6 ATS in their last seven. The Timberwolves have had a tendency to play down to their competition and will get lazy on defense at times. They can't get lazy against the Blazers here tonight, so look for the Minnesota bench to provide a spark on defense.
Final Trail Blazers-Timberwolves Prediction & Pick
The Portland Trail Blazers are massively disadvantaged here with their injuries, so it'll take an improbably effort for them to get the win here. Still, while Minnesota will win this game, we've seen similar point spreads covered in the past. Just the other day, we picked the Spurs to cover +18 against the Warriors. Let's take the Trail Blazers to cover the huge spread.
Final Trail Blazers-Timberwolves Prediction & Pick: Portland Trail Blazers +17 (-108)
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