Minnesota Timberwolves vs Miami Heat Prediction, 12/26/2022 Preview and Pick

Game: Minnesota Timberwolves vs Miami Heat

Date: Monday, December 26, 2022

Location: FTX Arena in Miami, FL

TV: Bally Sports Sun

Odds/Point Spread: Minnesota (+5)

The Minnesota Timberwolves are on their way to FTX Arena on Monday where they will try to beat the Miami Heat. Minnesota opens this matchup as 5-point underdogs from Vegas oddsmakers. The total is 224.

The Timberwolves stepped onto the hardwood against the Celtics and took a loss by a score of 121-109 in their last game. Minnesota finished having earned a 48.4% FG percentage (44 out of 91) and converted 10 of their 32 shots from beyond the arc. At the charity stripe, the Timberwolves made 11 of their 15 tries for a percentage of 73.3%. In regard to grabbing boards, they earned 45 with 11 of them being offensive. They also distributed 25 assists in the matchup while forcing 11 turnovers and having 3 steals. In the matter of defending, Minnesota allowed their opponent to shoot 44.0% from the field on 44 of 100 shooting. Boston totaled 28 assists and had 9 steals in the game. Moreover, Boston grabbed 53 rebounds (20 offensive, 33 defensive) and added 8 rejections. Boston finished the game at 76.9% at the charity stripe by making 20 of 26 shots. They also converted 13 of 46 shots from three-point range. Concerning fouls, the Timberwolves walked away with 18 and the Celtics totaled 16 fouls.

Anthony Edwards is someone who played a role in this contest. He ended up finishing with 30 points on 13 of 25 shooting. He was on the hardwood for 40 minutes and also collected 6 boards. Edwards walked away from this one shooting 52.0% from the field and also recorded 4 dimes.

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Minnesota enters this one with a win-loss mark of 16-17 this year. They average 114.8 pts per contest (11th in the NBA) while shooting 49.0% from the field. The Timberwolves are connecting on 34.1% on three-point attempts (366 of 1,073) and 77.8% from the free throw line. As a team, Minnesota is grabbing 42.6 boards per game and is sitting with 854 assists on the campaign, which ranks 10th in basketball in terms of passing the rock. They cough up possession 16.1 times per game and as a group are committing 21.8 fouls every game.

On defense, the Timberwolves are forcing their opponents into 15.7 turnovers per game and they draw 20.4 fouls. They are conceding 37.1% from beyond the arc while they are 22nd in basketball in PPG allowed (115.7). The Timberwolves defense is giving up an opponent shooting percentage of 45.9% (1,358 of 2,956) and they surrender 44.4 boards per game as a group. They are 27th in basketball in allowing assists to the opposition with 866 surrendered on the campaign.

The last time they took the court, the Heat took a defeat with a final score of 111-108 against the Pacers. In reference to how they rebounded, Miami allowed Indiana to pull down 43 overall (9 offensive). They went 44.7% from distance by connecting on 21 out of 47 and finished the game at 10 of 14 from the free throw line (71.4%). The Heat allowed the Pacers to bury 40 of their 83 tries from the field which had them shooting 48.2% for the game. Overall, the Heat finished shooting 41 out of 95 from the floor which had them shooting 43.2%. With regard to shooting from 3-point land, Miami converted 13 of their 33 attempts (39.4%). They were able to knock down 13 of the free throw tries for a rate of 92.9%. The Pacers had 23 fouls for this game which got the Heat to the charity stripe for a total of 14 tries. They gave up possession of the ball 10 times, while recording 7 steals for this game. The Heat were able to collect 25 defensive boards and 13 offensive rebounds totaling 38 in this contest.

Tyler Herro was important for the Heat for this game. He made 10 of 23 in the game for a rate of 43.5%, and had 4 rebounds. Herro recorded 28 points in his 39 minutes on the court and tallied 2 dimes in the game.

Miami has a record of 16-17 this year. The Heat commit 19.1 personal fouls per contest and they connect on 82.3% from the charity stripe. Their rate of dishing out assists is at 23.8 times per game (22nd in basketball) and they are giving up possession 13.8 times per game. Miami has accounted for 3,563 pts this season (108.0 per contest) and they pull down 40.8 boards per game. When it comes to offensive execution, the Heat are shooting 45.1% from the floor, which has them ranked 26th in the NBA.

The Miami defense allows 36.0% on 3-point attempts (436 of 1,211) and their opponents are knocking down 77.4% of their free throw shots. They have surrendered 25.5 assists and 43.5 boards per contest, which is 19th and 16th in the league. The Heat on the defensive side of the court are 4th in the league in PPG allowed with 109.2. They are forcing 16.1 TO's per game and have let teams shoot 47.3% from the field (19th in the NBA).

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

Tony Sink's Pick: Take Minnesota (+5)

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