After a slow start, the Timberwolves came out an dominated the Lakers in Game 1 in Los Angeles. Minnesota pulled away with a 22-point victory, despite entering the game as five-point underdogs. The Wolves are dogs once again in Game 2 on Tuesday, in what shapes up as a very important game for the Lakers. Let’s break down a betting angle below.
Minnesota Timberwolves at Los Angeles Lakers
While LeBron James was by far the most tested player on the floor on Saturday night when it comes to playoff basketball, he told reporters after the loss that it would take a game to adjust to playoff basketball. That’s probably just an excuse for a poor outing, but regardless, I believe the Lakers will be ready to go on Tuesday.
LeBron’s teams have historically gotten off to slow starts in a Game 1, but made the required adjustments to get back into the series. But one thing the Lakers did do on Saturday night was put together a strong first quarter, which has been a theme this season. Los Angeles led Minnesota 28-21 through 12 minutes, which improved the Lakers to 48-35 against the first quarter spread this season.
James knows he can’t allow his team to fall into a 0-2 deficit in this series and then go on the road for Game 3. We’ll see if he and Luka Doncic can ultimately get the win to even the series, but we will get a very focused and desperate Lakers effort right out of the gates in Game 2. Given the urgency of the situation, along with the trends that support the Lakers performing well early in games, this is the perfect spot to back the Lakers to cover the first quarter spread. Minnesota doesn’t do anything that would scare you off of this play, sitting at 38-41-4 1Q ATS this season, including a failed cover in Game 1.
I’ll be backing yet another strong start from the Lakers in Game 2.
Best Bet: Lakers 1Q -2 (-112) 1-unit
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