Oklahoma City Thunder vs. Minnesota Timberwolves Prediction, Preview, and Odds

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On Tuesday night, the Oklahoma City Thunder head to the Target Center for a road meeting against the Minnesota Timberwolves. The Thunder lost 127-123 to the Philadelphia 76ers. The Timberwolves defeated the Memphis Grizzlies on Sunday. The tip is at 8:10 PM ET. Minnesota opens as a home favorite.

Minnesota is 2-1 in the West Group C of the in-season tournament, while OKC is 1-2 and has been eliminated.

Thunder Humbled at Home

The young Oklahoma City Thunder fell victim to Joel Embiid as they lost 127-123 in a thriller Saturday night. Rookie Chet Holmgren led Oklahoma City with 33 points and Shai Gilgeous-Alexander scored 31. Embiid and the Sixers have been a kryptonite for the Thunder. Oklahoma City has lost four straight home games to the 76ers. 

Guard Josh Giddey finished with 10 points, seven rebounds, and eight assists. He started despite an investigation by the NBA into accusations he had an improper relationship with an underage girl. The allegations came in a since-deleted social media post by an anonymous user from an account that’s since been deactivated. 

“They delivered,” coach Mark Daigneault said of the 76ers. “They made some plays. They made some shots. I thought we had a couple of self-inflicted mistakes and unforced errors on our part.”

Philadelphia had a large advantage at the free throw line, making 37 of 45 attempts compared to 21 of 26 for Oklahoma City. Despite the loss, they have played excellently this season, seventh in defensive rating and sixth in offensive rating. They lead the NBA in three-point field goal percentage, and first in free throw percentage.

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Timberwolves Crush the Grizzlies

The Timberwolves raced to a huge second-quarter lead as they coasted 119-97 over the Memphis Grizzlies. Anthony Edwards scored 24 points and Karl-Anthony Towns dropped 18. Rudy Gobert added 13 points in another staunch defensive effort. Minnesota is second in defensive rating. The Timberwolves were dominant in the first half as Minnesota was still shooting 60% from the field overall and 6 of 10 from outside the arc midway through the second quarter. The game was essentially over in the second frame. 

Edwards was questionable for the game after waking up Sunday morning with back spasms. He went through his pregame routine before Minnesota said he would play. “Ant is a fierce competitor,” coach Chris Finch said to Associated Press reporters. “He's a gamer. He loves to play He's not somebody who is ever looking for a reason not to play. I was very pleased and proud of him for battling through.” They lead the Western Conference heading into this in-season tournament showdown with the Thunder. The Towns-Gobert experiment in the paint has paid huge dividends for Minnesota, especially on the defensive end. Opposing teams are shooting 33% from downtown, third-best in the NBA. 

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The Timberwolves jumped to a huge second-quarter lead as they won 119-97 over the Memphis Grizzlies two nights ago. Anthony Edwards scored 24 points and Karl-Anthony Towns dropped 18. Rudy Gobert added 13 points in another staunch defensive effort. Minnesota is second in defensive rating and Gobert is a big reason why. Opposing teams are shooting less than 33% from three-point land, and the Thunder rely heavily on the three-ball. Minnesota will lock it down on the perimeter, forcing the Thunder into tough mid-range shots. Minnesota has covered the spread in eight of its last nine home games. The Thunder have issues with the Timberwolves. They have lost eight of nine against Minnesota.

Take the Timberwolves to win and cover.

Prediction: Minnesota Timberwolves -4

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The Thunder rank 10th in pace of play leading into this in-season tournament game. Minnesota has done an elite job of running clubs off the three-point line. As a result, teams are forced to make tough buckets against twin-towers Gobert and Towns. Oklahoma City struggled on the defensive end the last few years, but not this season. They are seventh in defensive rating, and Chet Holmgren's healthy for the first time is a big boost. The total number has gone under in six of Oklahoma City’s last seven games against the Timberwolves. Oklahoma City played a high-scoring game against Philadelphia, but this will be a slower grind.

Take the under.

Prediction: UNDER

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