Minnesota Timberwolves at Houston Rockets Betting Preview/Prop Picks

The Minnesota Timberwolves possess one of the best offenses in the NBA. Tonight, they'll test that offense against one of the worst defenses in the NBA, the Houston Rockets.

Don't be shocked if you see a few players being rested in this game, though. Minnesota could sit a few players since the playoffs are quickly nearly here. So, can Minnesota notch another win?

The Houston Rockets have lost three straight games and have no chance to make the playoffs. Since the Timberwolves are essentially locked in, there's very low risk for the Timberwolves.

However, the Rockets won't want to become another tally mark on the Timberwolves' schedule. In order to avoid this, they'll need to slow down the highest-scoring offense in the entire NBA.

Minnesota Timberwolves: KAT and Edwards are still active

As it stands, all of the starters for the Timberwolves will be playing tonight. This means that the team that makes up the No.1 scoring offense will all be on the court. On average, Minnesota scores 115.47 points per game.

They're shooting 45.55% from the field and 35.67% from the three-point line. This offense is tough to stop, and it was evident in their most recent game.

Minnesota faced the Denver Nuggets on the road against Nikola Jokic. The Nuggets are just ahead of the Timberwolves in the standings within the Western Conference.

Although many believed that the Nuggets would win this one, the Timberwolves won 136-130. Karl-Anthony Towns had an incredible game, scoring 36 points and adding nine rebounds to the stat line.

Houston Rockets: Can their defense be resilient this time?

The most important thing for the Houston Rockets in the offseason is addressing their defense. This defense has allowed 117.79 points per game, ranking dead-last in the NBA.

Yet again, this defense has to try and hold themselves against an incredible offense. The last win the Houston Rockets had was against the Portland Trail Blazers. They need to try and replicate that outing. 

The Rockets beat the Trail Blazers in back-to-back games on the road. This was only about a week ago that the Rockets first won 125-106. They followed it up with a 115-98 victory, proving that the Rockets can, in fact, play defense.

Unfortunately, the Trail Blazers' offense doesn't quite hold the same kind of weight as the Timberwolves. Still, the Rockets can use it as a guide. 

Minnesota Timberwolves at Houston Rockets Betting Pick

The Rockets come into this game as 12.5-point underdogs, quite the generous spread. As we mentioned above, the Timberwolves could announce that they'll be resting players.

However, even if they don't, we think the Rockets can keep this game within 12.5-points. In the past, they haven't done well against Minnesota, but they can rewrite the story here. 

One thing we'd definitely recommend here is taking the over, which is set at 231. In their last game, the Timberwolves beat the Rockets 141-123, easily going over the total. Expect another high-scoring game, but for the outcome to be slightly different. 

DunkelIndex Free Pick: Houston Rockets +12.5, OVER

Prop Pick

Houston (-105) OVER 114.5 Points

Minnesota is allowing 112.6 points per game on defense, which ranks No. 23 in the league. That average increases to 117.9 points per game on the road. Scores have gone OVER in 12 of the Timberwolves’ last 14 games as a road favorite.

With Dunkel predicting a Minnesota victory by the score of 128-118, take the Rockets (-105) to finish OVER their Vegas team total of 114.5 points against the Timberwolves.

Karl-Anthony Towns (-115) OVER 26.5 Points

Towns is averaging 24.5 points per game, which ranks No. 1 on the Timberwolves. That average increases to 25.4 points per game over his last 10 games and 35.0 points per game in his two games versus Houston this year.

With Dunkel predicting a Minnesota win and the final score going OVER the Vegas total, take Towns (-115) to have a big game and go OVER 26.5 points against the Rockets.

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