NBA Game Preview: Timberwolves Vs Pelicans, Starting lineups, Odds, Predictions 11/14/18

The New Orleans Pelicans (7-6) will hit the road on Wednesday night to take on the Minnesota Timberwolves (5-9) for the first time this year.

NBA Game Preview: pelicans visit wolves

New Orleans is on a three-game winning streak and will look to keep that momentum going in tonight’s game. The Timberwolves will be looking for back-to-back home victories after losing five of their last six games.

The Pelicans left Toronto Monday night with a surprising 16-point (126-110) upset over the reigning Eastern Conference champion Toronto Raptors (12-2).

Center Anthony Davis grabbed a season-high 20 rebounds but small forward E’Twaun Moore led the charge with 30 points, 3 assists, 2 rebounds, 1 steal and 3 threes with 2 turnovers. He went 13-of-18 from the field, for a 72.2% field goal percentage; 1/2 from the line, 3/5 from three-point range.

Davis is averaging 24.6 points and 12.9 rebounds while Nikola Mirotic is averaging 20.6 points and 11.7 rebounds. Jrue Holiday is the third double-digit scorer and Julius Randle is grabbing 8.2 rebounds.

The Pelicans rank third in the league for points per game, field goal percentage, and assists per game. The team needs work on steals per game, free throw percentage, and turnovers per game (No. 21, No. 20 and No. 20, respectively).

The Pelicans are shooting 35.9 percent from beyond the arc and 74.2 percent from the free throw line. On defense, New Orleans have allowed 36.1 percent shooting from deep and are grabbing 48.2 rebounds per game.

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New Orleans have a 4-6 record during their last ten-game stretch and are 2-5 in away games this season. The Pelicans are averaging 118.3 points on 48.4 percent shooting and allowing 116.5 points on 46.2 percent shooting.

The Jimmy Butler drama is finally over in Minneapolis as Robert Covington and Dario Saric replace the All-Star forward.

Minnesota enters this contest with a 121-113 win over the Brooklyn Nets (6-8),  a 3-7 record in their last ten games and a 5-1 mark at home. The Timberwolves are averaging 111.2 points on 43.6 percent shooting and allowing 117.4 points on 46.8 percent shooting.

Center Karl-Anthony Towns led the T-wolves with 25 points, 3 assists, 21 rebounds, 1 steal, 2 blocks and 2 threes with 10 turnovers. He went 9-of-11 from the field, for an 81.8% field goal percentage; 5/6 from the line, 2/2 from three-point range.

Towns is averaging 20.3 points and 11.6 rebounds while Derrick Rose is averaging 19.2 points and 4.8 assists. Andrew Wiggins is the third double-digit scorer and Jeff Teague is dishing 7.4 assists.

The Timberwolves are shooting 36.1 percent from beyond the arc and 82 percent from the free throw line. The Minnesota Timberwolves are allowing 37.6 percent shooting from deep and are grabbing 43.6 rebounds per game. The Minnesota Timberwolves have won three straight home games.

The Timberwolves are one of the best teams in the league in steals per game (No. 3), free throw percentage (fourth) and turnovers per game (seventh). The team needs work on field goal percentage (No. 26), defensive rebounds per game (No. 26) and assists per game (No. 19)

In the last two weeks, the Pelicans have played seven games. In that time, their straight up record is 3-4 with a 0.3 average point differential. Their record against the spread is 3-4, with an average pre-game line of 2.1 and an ATS average result of 2.4.

The Timberwolves have gone 2-5 in their last seven games and have an average point differential of -9. Against the spread, their record is 3-4, with an average pre-game line of 3.6 and an average -5.4 against the spread.

This game will air on ESPN and FSN at 8:00 p.m. EST.

Article by Dewayne Goforth