The Minnesota Timberwolves (29-26) meet the Chicago Bulls (34-21) Friday at United Center with the tip-off scheduled for 8 p.m. ET. Below, we look at the Timberwolves at Bulls odds and lines, and make our expert NBA picks, predictions and bets.
Minnesota had a 5-game winning streak snapped last time out in a 132-119 loss to the Kings in Sacramento as a 7-point favorite Wednesday. The T-Wolves are 5-1 against the spread (ATS) in their last six games.
Chicago stopped a 2-game losing skid by crushing the Hornets 121-109 in Charlotte as a 2-point favorite. Over the past two weeks, the Bulls are 4-4 straight up (SU) and 5-3 ATS.
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Timberwolves at Bulls odds, spread and lines
Odds provided by Tipico Sportsbook; access USA TODAY Sports Scores and Sports Betting Odds hub for a full list. Lines last updated at 2:33 p.m. ET.
- Money line: Timberwolves +130 (bet $100 to win $130) | Bulls -160 (bet $160 to win $100)
- Against the spread: Timberwolves +3.5 (-110) | Bulls -3.5 (-110)
- Over/Under: 241.5 (O: -110 | U: -110)
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Timberwolves at Bulls key injuries
Timberwolves
- PG Patrick Beverley (ankle) questionable
- SF Anthony Edwards (knee) questionable
- SG D’Angelo Russell (shin) questionable
Bulls
- PG Lonzo Ball (knee) out
- SG Alex Caruso (wrist) out
- PG Ayo Dosunmu (concussion) questionable
- C Nikola Vucevic (hip) probable
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Timberwolves at Bulls odds, lines, picks and predictions
Prediction
Bulls 124, Timberwolves 116
Money line
PASS.
I slightly “lean” toward the Bulls (-160) because I’d much rather need an outright Chicago win rather than sweat the spread. But I’ll be greedy and lay the points with the Bulls instead.
Against the spread
BET BULLS -3.5 (-110) for 1 unit.
The T-Wolves may be in serious trouble against Chicago’s two All-Stars, SG Zach LaVine and SF DeMar DeRozan.
LaVine has balled out versus his former team. LaVine is averaging 28.9 points per game (PPG) on 50.7% shooting in seven career games against the T-Wolves. DeRozan lit up Minnesota last season, averaging 34.0 PPG on 54.8% shooting with a plus-16.0 net rating in two games versus T-Wolves.
Both LaVine and DeRozan excel at drawing fouls and Chicago is sixth in offensive FT/FGA rate whereas Minnesota has the worst defensive FT/FGA rate. Plus, there are several players on Minnesota’s injury report that would help defense LaVine and DeRozan.
Not only are Edwards and Beverley dealing with injuries, but backup forwards Taurean Prince and Josh Okogie are also listed as “questionable.” This puts a lot of pressure on T-Wolves dynamic defensive wing Jarred Vanderbilt to deal with both LaVine and DeRozan.
Over/Under
PASS.
According to Pregame.com, slightly more action is on the Under but the total has ticked up from the 238-point opener to the current price. This type of reverse line movement is typically a red flag in sports betting.
However, my prediction aligns too closely with the projected total so there’s no value in me betting this number.
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