NBA Preseason/Friday's Picks

The Minnesota Timberwolves try to make it two straight victories to open the preseason as the travel to Denver tonight to face the Nuggets. Game time is 9:00 pm ET at Ball Arena.

The Twovles (1-0) squeaked out a 117-114 win in their opener against New Orleans on Monday as they almost wasted a 16-point lead heading into the fourth quarter. Minnesota did a good job pushing the pace with 21 fast break points compared to the Pels 8 and also moved the ball well with 30 assists to New Orleans’ 21. D’Angelo Russell was the high-scorer with 19 points in just 16 minutes of play.

The Nuggets (0-2) have yet to break through with a win in the preseason after dropping the first two to the LA Clippers and Golden State Warriors by a combined total of 3 points. Wednesday’s 118-116 loss at Golden State came after Denver led through 3 quarters by 5. Not surprisingly, the Nuggets were burned from the outside by GS, which shot 45.7 percent (21-of-46) from beyond the arc.

Dunkel has the underdog Timberwolves picking up the road win tonight with the final score going under the Vegas total of 223 ½.

Dunkel’s Pick: Minnesota (+2 ½); Under

Below are all of Dunkel’s picks for today’s NBA preseason schedule:

OCTOBER 8

Indiana at Cleveland
Time: 7:00 pm ET
Dunkel Ratings: Indiana 114.776; Cleveland 106.915
Dunkel Line & Total: Indiana by 8; 220
Vegas Line & Total: Indiana by 3 ½; 216 ½
Dunkel Pick: Indiana (-3 ½); Over

Milwaukee at Brooklyn
Time: 7:30 pm ET
Dunkel Ratings: Milwaukee 122.419; Brooklyn 123.777
Dunkel Line & Total: Brooklyn by 1 ½; 215
Vegas Line & Total: Brooklyn by 4 ½; 218 ½
Dunkel Pick: Milwaukee (+4 ½); Under

New Orleans at Chicago
Time: 8:00 pm ET
Dunkel Ratings: New Orleans 119.871; Chicago 129.058
Dunkel Line & Total: Chicago by 9; 217
Vegas Line & Total: Chicago by 5 ½; 223 ½
Dunkel Pick: Chicago (-5 ½); Under

Miami at San Antonio
Time: 8:30 pm ET
Dunkel Ratings: Miami 123.114; San Antonio 116.022
Dunkel Line & Total: Miami by 7; 219
Vegas Line & Total: San Antonio by 1 ½; 217 ½
Dunkel Pick: Miami (+7 ½); Over

LA Clippers at Dallas
Time: 8:30 pm ET
Dunkel Ratings: LA Clippers 113.067; Dallas 124.170
Dunkel Line & Total: Dallas by 11; 209
Vegas Line & Total: Dallas by 3 ½; 215 ½
Dunkel Pick: Dallas (-3 ½); Under

Minnesota at Denver
Time: 9:00 pm ET
Dunkel Ratings: Minnesota 120.478; Denver 118.727
Dunkel Line & Total: Minnesota by 1 ½; 217
Vegas Line & Total: Denver by 2 ½; 223 ½
Dunkel Pick: Minnesota (+2 ½); Under

LA Lakers at Golden State
Time: 10:00 pm ET
Dunkel Ratings: LA Lakers 113.715; Golden State 121.042
Dunkel Line & Total: Golden State by 7 ½; 226
Vegas Line & Total: Golden State by 2 ½; 222 ½
Dunkel Pick: Golden State (-2 ½); Over