The Minnesota Timberwolves languished in the lottery for so long, but have picked up their play this season and have the fourth-best record in the Western Conference. If they can keep it up they will finally be heading back to the playoffs.
Minnesota would love to pick up a winnable game on the road on Christmas when it faces off against the Los Angeles Lakers. The Lakers are still in a rebuilding phase but have been competitive at home and they will aim to pull this one out.
This could be a competitive matchup to wrap up an intriguing set of games on the holiday.
This war on the floor will go down Monday, December 25, 2017, at 10:30 p.m. ET at the Staples Center. The game will be televised live on TNT.
We'll have NBA odds at BookMaker.eu available for this and every game on the NBA Monday schedule.
Odds Analysis
The Timberwolves are leading the Northwest Division with a 19-13 record and are 13-17-2 against the spread. They are 8-6-1 against the spread on the road this season. Minnesota has covered in only seven of 22 tries as the favorite.
The Lakers are 11-18 straight up and 15-14 against the spread. Los Angeles has covered in eight out of 14 attempts at home on the year and is 13-13 against the spread as the underdog.
Key Stat
Three. That’s the number of go-to players the Timberwolves now employ after the acquisition of Jimmy Butler. He has been a key since joining the team from the Bulls this offseason, averaging 20.2 points, 5.5 rebounds and 4.7 assists per contest.
Butler was the scorer the Timberwolves needed to go with Karl-Anthony Towns and Andrew Wiggins. KAT is averaging 20.7 points and 11.6 rebounds per game while Wiggins is adding 17.6 points and 4.0 rebounds.
That type of balance has made it tough for defenses to key in on one person, and helps rescue the Timberwolves if one of the them is ever having an off night.
Player To Watch
Kyle Kuzma — The Lakers’ rookie set a career-high in his team’s win over the red-hot Rockets on December 20th, finishing with 38 points. He was 12-of-17 from the field and 7-of-10 from the three-point line.
Kuzma, a first round pick out of Utah, has had a strong start to his NBA career but this big performance — opposite James Harden no less who had 51 points on the night — is a very promising thing for Lakers future. Kuzma is averaging a team-high 17.4 points a game along with 6.6 rebounds this year.
He scored 30 points against the Suns last month and has put up 20 or more in 12 games this season. He will look to build upon that big performance against the Rockets in hopes of turning the Lakers season around. There is outsized attention placed on Lonzo Ball, the No. 2 overall pick in the draft with the famous father, but thus far Kuzma has been the rookie to really shine.
Free NBA ATS Picks
The Timberwolves have the superior record, but this won’t be an easy game. The Lakers have found some success of late and they should continue to improve as their rookies begin to figure out the NBA.
Kuzma has been a bright spot while Ball has looked better of late, and Los Angeles does have some intriguing young talent. Minnesota is an up-and-coming team, but it is still young and is prone to losing games on the road to inferior competition.
Take the Lakers to defend their home court in this one. The game should be competitive throughout and could come down to the wire. Take the “under” on the scoring total as their could be some missed shots early on until the teams get in a rhythm.
NBA Odds: Lakers 106, Timberwolves 104
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