Timberwolves vs Clippers Odds: Minnesota Struggling Without Towns
The Timberwolves Need To Right The Ship On Long Road Trip
The banged-up Minnesota Timberwolves (44-21) continue a six-game road trip as they take on the LA Clippers (41-22). Minnesota — without Karl-Anthony Towns as he recovers from a torn meniscus — has struggled as of late, dropping its last two games to the Cleveland Cavaliers and Los Angeles Lakers.
Sometimes, staying in Los Angeles for multiple days as the Timberwolves have is a bad sign for teams, but, given their health status, having some rest could help them in terms of Timberwolves vs Clippers betting.
Tyronn Lue’s team is coming off a 124-117 loss to the Milwaukee Bucks on Sunday, a game in which Paul George and Kawhi Leonard did not play because it was the second half of a back-to-back. Still, the Clippers fought hard with Milwaukee as LA got big performances from Norman Powell, Terance Mann and Amir Coffey.
They should have George and Leonard back tonight and they’ll be needed against Anthony Edwards who likely will light up the NBA scores today.
LA won the last meeting, an usually low-scoring 89-88 affair in Southern California. Look for there to be much more scoring today. The Timberwolves vs Clippers betting lines have the Clippers as comfortable 6.5-point favorites with the total at 215 points. The Clippers are -255 on the moneyline. How should you bet this game? Let’s break it down.
 Timberwolves vs LA Clippers 
Day/Time:
Location: Crypto.com Arena
Streaming: TNT
Injuries Galore
This is an essential game for the Western Conference standings, as the Los Angeles Clippers are just two games behind the Timberwolves for the No. 3 seed. Also, because Minnesota is currently leading the season series 2-1, tonight’s game could either put Minnesota up by three games and give the Timberwolves the tiebreaker over LA or could narrow the gap to one game and tie up the season series.
All three previous meetings between these teams this season have gone under, which is something to note for tonight’s game. Granted, NBA injuries did not affect those games as much as they will tonight’s.
Towns is out for the Timberwolves and Russell Westbrook (fractured left hand) is out for the Clippers. Also, Rudy Gobert (hamstring) missed the Timberwolves’ last game against the Lakers, and he is questionable tonight.
Considering how the Lakers’ Anthony Davis had a thermonuclear game on Sunday with Naz Reid and Luka Garza serving as Minnesota’s only bigs — he had 27 points, 25 rebounds, 5 assists, 7 steals and three blocks — it could mean that the under trend is in danger. Look for Ivica Zubac, Daniel Theis and Mason Plumlee to feast down low if Gobert is out.
If he does play, the under looks great. It helps that the over is 25-36-2 in Clippers’ games this season, owing to LA’s improved defense from a year ago. Also, Minnesota Timberwolves is first in defensive rating, but much of that is due to Gobert’s presence.
Leonard And George Together Means Trouble
There has never been a question about the Clippers’ talent, especially after James Harden has fit in so smoothly following his trade from the Philadelphia 76ers. The issue is whether everyone can be healthy at the same time.
So far, all three main guys have been able to mostly stay on the court, and, at least when Leonard and George play together, the results have been great.
The Clippers are 32-17 when they play together this season and, right now, it looks like they’ll each be available tonight. That’s a big reason why the Timberwolves vs Clippers betting lines are so one-sided in favor of LA.
Leonard and George are both listed as questionable on the injury report but this is something the Clippers typically do after players missed the previous game. They should be ready to go because Leonard and George missed Sunday’s game due to rest on the second half of a back-to-back.
Minnesota is — at full strength — well-equipped to defend a team like the Clippers. However, without Towns and Gobert, it’s very difficult for them to stop NBA teams from getting into the paint and scoring at will. Couple that with LA’s 38.7% shooting from three (second-best in the NBA), and the Timberwolves will be stretched thin on defense trying to stop all of LA’s talent.
Edwards Needs To Be More Efficient
If the Timberwolves are going to have a chance in this one so they can strengthen their spot in the NBA Western Conference standings, they’ll need Edwards to find his game. He has really struggled with his efficiency in Minnesota’s last two losses, as he has had to take on an increased offensive burden in Towns’ absence.
Against the Los Angeles Lakers, he wound up having a nice overall game but shot just 10-for-23 from the field and 2-for-9 from three and was even worse against Cleveland (7-for-27 from the field and 0-for-7 from three).
Edwards is always going to be a high-volume shooter, but what, in part, has turned him into a superstar has been his improved ability to make smart shot decisions. He also has refined his perimeter shot to make it more consistent.
The key for him here is to realize that while he does need to lead the offense, he needs to get the supporting cast around him involved, too.
His play-making ability has gotten better each year in the league, yet he can fall back on bad habits when things aren’t going well. You can’t do that against a disciplined and talented Clippers team.
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