Los Angeles Lakers vs. Minnesota Timberwolves Game 3 Prediction, NBA Playoff Odds
Games 1 and 2 of the Lakers-Timberwolves series have been played in almost completely different fashions. Minnesota rode to a blowout 117-95 Game 1 victory, while L.A. answered back with a defensive 94-85 Game 2 win.
With the series shifting to Minnesota for Game 3 on Friday, the T-Wolves opened as 3.5-point favourites to win on the NBA odds, with the total pegged at 205.5.
Lakers vs. Timberwolves NBA Betting Odds
This has been a fairly close back-and-forth dating to the regular season, with the teams alternating victories over the last four head-to-heads. Another consistent factor has been the total, which has gone Under in six straight meetings.
The series odds have once again flip-flopped on the NBA futures board. L.A. is back to being favoured to win the series at -120, while Minnesota is a +100 underdog.
Oddsmakers also expect this thing to go the distance. The favoured exact series result is a Lakers win in seven games at +350, while the biggest long shot is Lakers in five at +600.
Both teams are paying nicely when it comes to their championship odds. L.A. is +1600 to win the NBA championship and Minnesota is +4000.
If you’re looking for player props, I like Luka Doncic to score 25-plus points in every game of the series at +110. He’s surpassed that total in six of his last seven games and he’s averaging 31 points per game in his playoff career.
Los Angeles Lakers
Doncic once again led the charge for L.A. in Game 2, finishing with a game-high 31 points, 12 rebounds and nine assists. He also led all scorers with 37 points in Game 1. Doncic’s play has taken a lot of the pressure off of LeBron James, who has outings of 21 and 19 points in the series. A big difference for the Lakers in Game 2 was their ability to grab the lead early. L.A. quickly jumped out to a 22-point lead and held on the rest of the way despite scoring just 60 points over the final three quarters. They also finished a perfect 20-for-20 on the free throw line.
Minnesota Timberwolves
Julius Randle led Minnesota with 27 points in Game 2 and Anthony Edwards added 25, but both players were clearly affected by the Lakers’ defensive adjustments. However, no one was impacted more by L.A.’s defensive scheme than four-time NBA Defensive Player of the Year, Rudy Gobert, who finished with just six points and six rebounds in Game 2. The Timberwolves’ three-point shooting was night and day in Game 1 and 2. They hit 21 of 42 shots (50 per cent) from beyond the arc in Game 1, but managed just 25 attempts in Game 2 and only hit five (20 per cent).
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