The Timberwolves are hosting the Thunder on Thursday. On DraftKings Sportsbook, Oklahoma City is favored by 6.5 points and this game carries a total of 224.5 points.
Let’s dive into three of my favorite player prop bets for Thursday’s matchup between the Timberwolves and the Thunder.
Best Timberwolves vs. Thunder Player Prop Bets on DraftKings Sportsbook
Shai Gilgeous-Alexander U 6.5 Assists (+102)
Jalen Williams (hamstring) will miss his sixth in a row tonight, but Gilgeous-Alexander hasn’t benefited as a playmaker with Williams sidelined. In these past five sans the forward, Gilgeous-Alexander is only averaging 5.6 assists per game, which is under his average of 6.2 for the season. During this five-game stretch, Gilgeous-Alexander has only topped 6.5 assists once. In fact, he has only exceeded this threshold twice in his last 12.
The Timberwolves are playing their second game in two nights this evening, but they still rank fourth in defensive rating and in his two matchups with Minnesota this season, Gilgeous-Alexander has dished out six and seven assists. The reigning MVP should do much more damage as a scorer than a facilitator tonight and backing Gilgeous-Alexander for under 6.5 assists makes a ton of sense at this +102 price.
Anthony Edwards O 2.5 Made Three-Pointers (-154)
Edwards has been great as a deep shooter this season and he is a strong bet for over 2.5 made three-pointers tonight. The wing is averaging 3.5 made three-pointers on 8.4 attempts per game. This results in a 41% three-point percentage, which is a career high for Edwards. The 24-year-old has knocked down at least three treys in eight of his last 10, and Edwards has hit five and three treys in his two matchups with the Thunder this season.
Oklahoma City prioritizes protecting the paint on defense and as a result, the club is allowing the fifth-most made three-pointers per game (14.3) on the fifth-highest three-point percentage (37%), so this is a strong spot for Edwards to get hot from deep.
Chet Holmgren U 18.5 Points (-119)
Holmgren is coming off a 20-point showing Tuesday, but this came against the Pelicans, who rank 27th in defensive rating this season. The big man is in a polar opposite spot tonight vs. the Timberwolves, who rank fourth in defensive rating. Holmgren has faced Minnesota twice this season and he scored just 12 and 14 points in these matchups. Like tonight, Williams was inactive in the first of these two games and overall, Holmgren is shooting a weak 38% from the field when facing the Timberwolves this season, which is well under his 57.1% average for the season.
Holmgren clearly has trouble facing Minnesota’s big frontcourt of Rudy Gobert and Julius Randle, and 18.5 points is simply too high of a bar for Holmgren in this matchup.
