Minnesota Timberwolves vs New Orleans Pelicans Prediction, 3/11/2021 NBA Pick, Tips and Odds

Game: Minnesota Timberwolves vs New Orleans Pelicans

Date: Thursday, March 11, 2021

Location: Smoothie King Center in New Orleans, LA

TV: Fox Sports New Orleans

Odds/Point Spread: Minnesota (+8.5)

The Minnesota Timberwolves (7-29) head to Smoothie King Center on Thursday where they'll meet the New Orleans Pelicans (15-21). Minnesota opens this contest as 8.5-point underdogs. The over/under has been set at 238.

The Minnesota Timberwolves faced off with the Charlotte Hornets and took a loss by a final of 135-102 in their last contest. Minnesota ended the contest having earned a 40.6% FG percentage (39 out of 96) and converted 9 of their 40 3-point shots. From the free throw line, the Timberwolves buried 15 of 18 tries for a rate of 83.3%. In relation to pulling down rebounds, they collected 45 with 12 of them being of the offensive sort. They also doled out 25 dimes in this contest as well as forcing 17 turnovers and getting 11 steals. With regard to the defense, Minnesota allowed the other team to go 52.0% from the floor on 51 out of 98 shooting. Charlotte distributed 33 dimes and had 14 steals in the matchup. Furthermore, Charlotte had 54 rebounds (13 offensive, 41 defensive) and added 7 rejections. Charlotte walked away from this one shooting 76.2% when shooting free throws by making 16 of their 21 attempts. They also converted 17 of their 39 shots from beyond the arc.

Ricky Rubio is one player who had an impact for this game. He had 20 points on 7 out of 11 shooting. He was on the hardwood for 24:22 mins and pulled down 4 boards. Rubio shot 63.6% from the floor and also recorded 9 dimes. An additional guy that was a major contributor in the matchup for the Timberwolves was Anthony Edwards. He grabbed 5 rebounds in his 33:09 minutes on the basketball court. He went 34.8% from the field for this game by shooting 8-of-23 (19 points). Overall, Edwards had accumulated 3 assists.

Minnesota will enter this matchup with a mark of 7-29 on the campaign. They are losing possession via turnover 14.7 times per game and as a team they commit 21.8 personal fouls per contest. As a team, Minnesota is pulling down 43.3 rebounds per contest and has accounted for 906 dimes so far this season, which ranks 14th in the NBA in terms of passing. The Timberwolves are connecting on 34.6% on three-point attempts (453 of 1,308) and 76.4% from the charity stripe. They have an average of 107.9 pts per game (24th in the NBA) while hitting 43.5% from the field. On defense, the Timberwolves are forcing 15.2 turnovers on a nightly basis while drawing 18.4 personal fouls. They relinquish 37.9% from beyond the arc and they are 28th in the NBA in PPG from their opponents (117.0). The Timberwolves defensively are giving up an opponent shooting percentage of 47.9% (548 of 664) and they surrender 47.5 boards per game as a unit. They are ranked 25th in basketball in giving up assists to their opponents with 929 relinquished on the campaign.

The last time they took the hardwood, the New Orleans Pelicans walked away from this one with a loss by a score of 103-93 when they played the Miami Heat. The Pelicans corralled 29 defensive boards and 15 offensive rebounds totaling 44 for the game. They also coughed it up 12 times, while getting 5 steals in the matchup. The Heat committed 20 personal fouls in the game which took the Pelicans to the charity stripe for a total of 20 tries. They were able to make 16 of those for a rate of 80.0%. Regarding shooting from distance, New Orleans converted 11 of 43 attempts (25.6%). At the conclusion of this game, the Pelicans finished 33 for 84 from the field which gave them a percentage of 39.3%. The Pelicans allowed the Heat to make 36 of 73 tries from the field which had them sitting at 49.3% for this contest. They finished 33.3% from three-point range by going 10 out of 30 and ended up shooting 21 of 25 at the free throw line (84.0%). In relation to cleaning the glass, New Orleans allowed Miami to grab 41 overall (5 on the offensive side).

Brandon Ingram ended up having an impact for the Pelicans for this contest. He made 6 of 12 for this contest for a field goal rate of 50.0%, and accounted for 5 rebounds. Ingram recorded 17 points in his 32:25 minutes on the hardwood and accounted for 9 assists in this game. Someone else that ended up playing a role for New Orleans was Steven Adams. He wrapped the game up with 1 assist in 25:15 mins on the hardwood, and he converted 6 out of 7 from the floor. Adams wrapped this one up going 85.7% from the floor as well as contributing 15 points and 5 rebounds.

New Orleans has a win-loss record of 15-21 on the season. The Pelicans have committed 17.5 personal fouls per contest and they connect on 73.2% from the charity stripe. They are assisting teammates 25.6 times per contest (12th in the NBA) and they turn it over 13.9 times per game. New Orleans has accumulated 4,157 pts this season (115.5 per game) and they average 46.1 rebounds per game. In terms of offensive execution, the Pelicans are connecting on 48.4% from the field, which is ranked 5th in basketball. The Pelicans defensively are ranked 26th in the NBA in points per game surrendered with 115.9. They relinquish 27.7 assists and 40.7 boards every game, ranking them 29th and 1st in the NBA. The New Orleans defense concedes 39.3% on 3-point attempts (560 of 1,424) and their opponents are making 80.1% of their free throw attempts. They are forcing their opponents into 13.1 TO's per game and allow teams to shoot 47.6% from the floor (26th in the league).

Who will win tonight's NBA game against the spread?

Josh Schonwald's Pick: Take Minnesota (+8.5)

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