Not too often that NBA teams will play a home-and-home set, but that’s the case on Friday night between the Timberwolves and Pacers as they square off in Indianapolis. The Pacers will be solid favorites on the Mybookie NBA odds.
How to Bet Timberwolves at Pacers NBA Odds & TV Info
- When: Friday, 7 PM ET
- Where: Bankers Life Fieldhouse
- TV: NBA TV
- Live Stream: NBA League Pass
- Radio: SiriusXM
- NBA Odds: Indiana Pacers -8.5
Timberwolves vs Pacers Last Season
The teams split, with each winning at home. Indiana had won four straight road games in the series before the Timberwolves earned a 101-91 win in Minnesota on Oct. 22, 2018. In addition, Minnesota defeated Indiana 119-111 in the preseason at Bankers Life Fieldhouse, highlighted by Robert Covington’s 19 rebounds. Indiana leads 37-21 all-time and 22-7 at home.
Why Bet on Minnesota?
The Wolves’ slump continued Wednesday in their 104-99 home loss to the Pacers, Minnesota’s third straight loss. Wolves big man Karl-Anthony Towns missed his 15th straight game with a left knee sprain/illness. According to one report, Towns is working through an illness, and his knee is no longer an issue so he could play Friday.Gorgui Dieng has played well in Towns’ place and double-doubled with 15 points 11 rebounds, three assists and one block in 29 minutes on Wednesday. Dieng surpassed the 20-minute threshold for the first time in four games, leading all Minnesota big men in minutes played.
Keita Bates-Diop made 4-of-10 field goals and 5-of-5 free throws en route to 15 points against the Pacers, adding six rebounds, three assists and one block. Andrew Wiggins was held scoreless in the second half on 0-of-5 shooting for Minnesota after 10 first-half points.
Trade Season
Minnesota perhaps has waived the white flag on the season, trading point guard Jeff Teague and reserve Treveon Graham to Atlanta for Allen Crabbe on Thursday. Teague played for the Hawks from 2009 to 2016. More importantly for Atlanta, it gives new starting point guard Trae Young an experienced backup at the point guard position.Teague was averaging 13.2 points and 6.1 assists per game this season. By unloading Teague, the Wolves free up additional opportunities for rookie Jarrett Culver and Shabazz Napier at the point.
Crabbe had a tough time fitting with a young Hawks team, averaging 5.1 points, 2.3 rebounds, and 1.0 assists per game this season in only 18.6 minutes of playing time per outing. He’s a career 38.9% 3-point shooter and 3-point shooting is an area of need for Minnesota.
Team Stats
Offense- Total Score: 111.33
- Field Goal Percentage: 43.19
- Three-Point Percentage: 32.35
- Free Throw Percentage: 75.69
- Total Rebounds: 46.50
Defense
- Total Score: 114.53
- Field Goal Percentage: 45.85
- Three-Point Percentage: 35.62
- Free Throw Percentage: 78.71
- Total Rebounds: 48.50
Why Bet on Indiana?
Domantas Sabonis was the star for the Pacers on Wednesday, scoring 29 points on 13-for-17 shooting with 13 rebounds, six assists, one steal and one block in 36 minutes. Sabonis was a game-time decision for this contest as he continues to deal with some left knee soreness. It was the fifth time in his career Sabonis had 25 or more points and 10 or more rebounds in a game. Sabonis was quiet in the second half, though, making just one basket in each of the final two quarters. The fourth-year big man didn’t score in the second half until less than a minute remained in the third.Sabonis ranks fifth in the NBA in rebounding average and third with 32 double-doubles on the season, passing his career high set last season (30).
Malcolm Brogdon added 21 points, six rebounds and six assists in his second game back from injury and Doug McDermott scored 14 off the bench for the Pacers, who have won three straight games. It’s the seventh time this season Brogdon finished with 20 or more points, five or more assists, and five or more rebounds in a game. This is Indiana’s first win streak of three or more games since winning five in a row from Dec. 11 to Dec. 20.
More Numbers
Myles Turner played just 23 minutes against the Wolves on Wednesday, scoring seven points on 3-of-8 shooting with three rebounds. Aaron Holiday went 0-of-5 from the field for zero points in 18 minutes. The Pacers outscored the Timberwolves in the paint 56-46. Indiana held its opponents to less than 100 points in back-to-back games for the second time this season.The Pacers are 15-5 at home this season and have outscored their opponents by an average of 6.9 points per game. Opponents are shooting 42.6 percent from the field and 32.5 percent from 3-point range for an average of 103.3 points per game at Bankers Life Fieldhouse. The Pacers allowed the fewest points per game at home in the NBA in 2018-19 while holding opponents to 100.9 points per game on 43.8 percent shooting (first in the league).
Team Stats
Offense- Total Score: 109.24
- Field Goal Percentage: 47.00
- Three-Point Percentage: 36.75
- Free Throw Percentage: 79.52
- Total Rebounds: 43.66
Defense
- Total Score: 106.07
- Field Goal Percentage: 44.31
- Three-Point Percentage: 33.83
- Free Throw Percentage: 78.12
- Total Rebounds: 45.02
Timberwolves vs Pacers 2020 NBA Betting Trends
- Pacers are 4-1 SU in their last 5 games against an opponent in the Northwest division
- Pacers are 4-2 ATS in their last 6 games this season
- The total has gone OVER in 5 of Indiana’s last 7 games played in January
- Timberwolves are 2-10 SU in their last 12 games on the road
- Timberwolves are 1-4 ATS in their last 5 games played in January
- The total has gone UNDER in 10 of Minnesota’s last 15 games
