The 14-29 Jazz will have their work cut out for them tonight as they host the fourth seeded Timberwolves, whose 27-16 record underlines a big discrepancy here in terms of team quality. These two Western Conference teams have battled plenty over the years but currently the Jazz are rebuilding while the Wolves seek playoff success.
The Timberwolves are currently -700 favorites at DraftKings Sportsbook, with the point total set to 244.5, which is by far the highest on the slate tonight. Below, I’ll break down tonight’s matchup and offer my prediction.
Minnesota Timberwolves at Utah Jazz preview, prediction
The Jazz are currently in free fall, having dropped 10 of their last 12 games. This team can win more games, but they simply aren’t interested in doing so; as evidenced by their consistent resting of healthy players over the past couple of seasons. Lauri Markkanen has been a frequent healthy DNP because of this. The Jazz most recently lost two straight games to the Dallas Mavericks, while giving up 138 points and 144 points in those games, respectively. They are the absolute worst defense in the league and are conceding 122.3 PPG to opponents, which is a vile mark matched by their 119.4 PPG last season, which also happened to be dead last. And they were dead last the season before that too, with 119.6 PPG. Utah’s outlook is rooted firmly in future success with their young players in Keyonte George, Ace Bailey, Isaiah Collier, Kyle Filipowski, and Cody Williams. For now, they aren’t going anywhere.
The Minnesota Timberwolves are on the opposite side of the spectrum, having drafted Anthony Edwards in 2020. The young superstar guard has played in more than 72 games in all of his seasons in the NBA, and his remarkable health combined with his physical ability and constant evolution of his game has resulted in a Timberwolves squad that’s competitive in a loaded Western Conference. The Wolves are still searching for deep playoff success, but they understand that wins in the West do not come cheap.
Timberwolves at Jazz pick, best bet
Best bet: O 244.5
The Wolves are elite on offense, coming in as the sixth best offense across the entire league right now, while the Jazz rank dead last in defense. This is a case of an unstoppable force meeting a very moveable object, and I think this 244.5 line is too low given the enormous disparity between these two teams.
