The NBA has several great matchups on the scoreboard for the first Sunday of the NBA season, and the NBA TV spotlight matchup features the 2-0 Toronto Raptors visiting the 2-0 Minnesota Timberwolves. Both teams made significant offseason acquisitions and have gotten off to strong starts to the season, and one of them will improve to 3-0 with a win on Sunday night. The game tips off at 7:00 at Target Center in Minneapolis. Let’s take a look at the matchup and pick out a few Raptors-Timberwolves props that make sense to back this Sunday night.
In the bigger picture, the Timberwolves are slight 1.5-point favorites on DraftKings Sportsbook with the over/under at 228.5 points. The Wolves are getting 82% of the bets on the moneyline and 79% of the picks against the spread as of Sunday afternoon.
On the injury report, Donte DiVincenzo is out for Minnesota, while Nate Bittle and Malachi Smith are out for Toronto. The rest of the rosters are expected to be available for this early-season showdown.
Raptors at Timberwolves Props on DraftKings Sportsbook
Scottie Barnes 35+ Points + Rebounds + Assists (+112)
Even after reacquiring Kawhi Leonard this offseason, the Raptors are relying heavily on Barnes to carry the workload. Kawhi has been very solid so far, but the team will closely manage his workload for the long haul. Barnes has carried the load while Kawhi ramps up, and he has looked very up to the challenge in the first two games of the season.
In the team’s opener on Wednesday, Barnes had 23 points, six rebounds and five assists for 34 PRA (points, rebounds and assists) in just 26 minutes. He and the Raptors ran away from the Bulls, winning by 43 points, which resulted in a lighter workload.
On Friday, Barnes played 37 minutes in a closer contest against the Wizards, producing 28 points, 14 rebounds and five assists for an impressive 47 PRA.
Since this game should be close and competitive throughout, Barnes has a good chance to fill in his production across multiple categories and can be a nice play at plus-money to get to 35 PRA, even though Jaden McDaniels will be a tough defensive matchup for Barnes.
Jaden McDaniels Over 13.5 Points (-113)
McDaniels got a one-year, $40 million extension coming into the year and will be with the Wolves’ new core through the 2029-30 season. He started the year with 17 points in 29 minutes on Wednesday against the Heat, and he followed that up with 15 points on Friday in Orlando.
He has gone over this prop in each of his first two matchups after averaging a career-best 14.8 points per game in his 73 regular-season games last year. In his 12 playoff games, he was even more productive, averaging 16.3 points in 33.8 minutes per game in the playoffs.
With the Wolves’ new-look frontcourt rotation, McDaniels seems to be in line for more usage, which should make this scoring line attainable in Minnesota’s home opener.
LaMelo Ball Over 1.5 Steals (+135)
LaMelo Ball had exactly two steals in each of his first two games with the Timberwolves. He played 29 minutes against the Heat on Wednesday and only had to play 23 minutes against the Magic on Friday, but he still had a pair of swipes.
Ball averaged 1.2 steals in 28 minutes per game in the regular season last year, but he did average 1.8 steals in the 2023-24 season. He has looked very solid with his new squad, and he’s staying active on the defensive end of the court as well. While his offensive numbers are inflated a bit, he still gets very favorable odds for this prop, and he can deliver a nice win if he reaches two steals again on Sunday night.
Bonus Parlay Play: Kawhi Leonard Under 3.5 assists (-159)
If you are assembling a Same Game Parlay (SGP), be sure to capitalize on the available Profit Boost to use on a 3+ leg parlay on DraftKings Sportsbook. Adding in the under on Leonard’s assists boosts the SGP odds to a hefty +1400 for the four player prop bets in this post. Adding on the booster can take your winnings even higher!
Leonard isn’t carrying quite as many playmaking responsibilities with the Raptors and has only dished out two assists and one assist in his first two games of the season. He has the potential to be a creator on offense, but right now, he’s ramping up and letting Barnes, Immanuel Quickley and RJ Barrett carry the load with assists.
