Minnesota Timberwolves vs Portland Blazers Prediction, 1/7/2021 NBA Pick, Tips and Odds

Game: Minnesota Timberwolves vs Portland Blazers

Date: Thursday, January 7, 2021

Location: Moda Center in Portland, OR

TV: NBC Sports Northwest

Odds/Point Spread: Minnesota (+10.5)

Moda Center is the site where and the Portland Blazers (3-4) will play the Minnesota Timberwolves (2-5) on Thursday. The line on this matchup has Portland as 10.5-point favorites. The over/under has been set at 232.

The Minnesota Timberwolves faced the Denver Nuggets and went home with a loss by a final score of 123-116 in their last contest. Minnesota finished the contest with a 46.2% field goal percentage (42 of 91) and knocked down 11 of their 34 shots from 3-point land. From the free throw line, the Timberwolves made 21 of 27 shots for a percentage of 77.8%. Regarding grabbing rebounds, they earned 42 with 10 of them being of the offensive sort. They also distributed 24 assists in this matchup in addition to having 8 steals and 4 blocks. Pertaining to the defense, Minnesota allowed their opponent to shoot 51.9% from the floor on 41 out of 79 shooting. Denver doled out 22 dimes and had 9 steals in this contest. On top of that, the Nuggets grabbed 42 rebounds (10 offensive, 32 defensive) and got 2 blocked shots. Denver ended up shooting 73.3% at the free throw line by converting 33 of 45 attempts. They buried 8 of their 25 shots from three-point range.

D'Angelo Russell is a player who was important in this game. He notched 33 points on 10 out of 21 shooting. He was on the court for 37:21 mins and also snagged 3 rebounds. Russell finished 47.6% from the field and also dished out 11 assists. An additional guy that was a determining factor in this game for the Timberwolves was Juan Hernangómez. He had 8 rebounds and accumulated 2 dimes. He finished the contest at 71.4% from the floor in this matchup by connecting on 10-of-14 (25 points). When all was said and done, Hernangómez played 34:21 min.

Minnesota heads into this game with a mark of 2-5 on the year. They are turning it over 14.6 times per contest and as a team are committing 21.9 personal fouls every game. As a unit, Minnesota is pulling down 42.3 boards per game and has 163 dimes so far this season, which has them ranked 20th in the league in terms of passing. The Timberwolves are shooting 31.6% on shots from distance (77 of 244) and 73.8% from the free throw line. They are averaging 107.6 points per contest (22nd in basketball) while going 44.3% from the floor. Defensively, the Timberwolves are forcing their opponents into 16.1 turnovers per game and they draw 19.6 fouls. They are surrendering 37.8% on three-point shots while they are 28th in the NBA in PPG allowed (120.0). The Timberwolves are giving up a FG percentage of 50.1% (113 of 137) and they surrender 45.9 rebounds per game as a squad. They are 27th in the league in giving up assists with 199 surrendered for the season.

The last time they took the hardwood, the Portland Blazers took a loss by a score of 111-108 when they played the Chicago Bulls. The Blazers were able to collect 36 defensive boards and 10 offensive rebounds for a total of 46 for the matchup. They turned away 3 shots while earning 8 steals for the contest. The Bulls committed 19 personal fouls for the contest which took the Blazers to the charity stripe for 17 attempts. They were able to make 11 of the free throw attempts for a rate of 64.7%. In reference to shots from downtown, Portland converted 19 of their 51 tries (37.3%). When the final whistle blew, the Blazers ended up going 39 for 94 from the field which had them at 41.5%. The Blazers permitted the Bulls to knock down 40 of their 91 attempts from the field which had them sitting at 44.0% in this matchup. They shot 39.0% from three-point range by shooting 16 of 41 and ended up shooting 15 of 18 at the free throw line (83.3%). In reference to rebounding, Portland allowed Chicago to collect 52 overall (11 on the offensive glass).

CJ McCollum ended up having an impact for the Blazers for this game. He buried 10 out of 21 for the matchup for a field goal rate of 47.6%, which earned him 26 points. McCollum snagged 5 rebounds in his 35:56 minutes of time on the court and totaled 4 assists for this game. One more player who was a determining factor for Portland was Damian Lillard. He totaled 24 points in his 36:42 mins played via 6 out of 17 from the floor for this game. Lillard finished going 35.3% from the floor while also earning 9 dimes and 5 total rebounds.

Portland has a mark of 3-4 this year. Portland has tallied 801 points this year (114.4 per contest) and they grab 44.0 rebounds per contest. The Blazers are committing 20.1 fouls per contest and they shoot 77.5% from the free throw line. As an offensive unit, the Blazers are hitting on 43.2% from the floor, which ranks 29th in the NBA. They are dishing out assists 21.9 times per game (27th in the league) and they lose possession via turnover 11.7 times per game. The Blazers are ranked 26th in the NBA in points per game surrendered with 118.1. They are able to force 14.0 turnovers on a nightly basis and allow teams to shoot 47.7% from the field (23rd in the league). The Portland defense allows 36.2% on shots from 3-point land (94 of 260) and their opponents are converting on 80.1% of their free throw shots. They allow 24.3 dimes and 48.3 boards per game, which has them ranked 16th and 25th in the NBA.

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

Tony Sink's Pick: Take Minnesota (+10.5)

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