The Minnesota Timberwolves have moved on from Jimmy Butler in a big way, as the club can reach the .500 mark for the first time this season when they host the Boston Celtics on Saturday. Sportsbooks opened the Celtics as 2-point road underdogs with a total of 214.
- The UNDER is 12-2 in the Timberwolves' last 14 games.
- The home team is 10-2 ATS in the last 12 meetings between the Timberwolves and Celtics.
- The favorite is 4-0 ATS in the last four matchups between the Timberwolves and Celtics.
Celtics vs Timberwolves Game Center.
It’s been smooth sailing for the T-Wolves recently
The Wolves are coming off a 128-89 rout of the San Antonio Spurs on Wednesday and have rattled off wins in four straight and seven of the nine since trading Butler to the Philadelphia 76ers. Robert Covington, who was one of the players acquired by Minny in the deal, paved the way with 21 points and nine rebounds against the spurs. Minnesota improved to 9-3 SU at home this season while holding its opponent under 100 points for the third contest in a row.
Boston has averaged 126 points in two straight wins entering tonight’s game, as Marcus Smart has done well since stepping into the starting lineup in place of the injured Jaylen Brown. Brown told reporters he hopes to return against the Timberwolves. Boston has dominated this series lately, winning four straight against the T-Wolves.
Minny is an UNDER machine right now
Quietly, the Timberwolves have been one of the hottest UNDER teams in the Association lately. In Minnesota’s past 14 games, the UNDER is 12-2. The Timberwolves’ improvement on the defensive end since the Butler trade is a major reason for that stat, and Covington has been a big reason for that.
According to betting trends, the Celtics may be a stay-away team in tonight’s slate of action. Boston is 1-6 ATS in its previous seven games against Western Conference opponents, and the Celtics are 0-4 ATS when playing in the second half of a back to back set. Boston is also 2-11 ATS in its last 13 road games against teams with winning records.
My pick: take the UNDER
While the Celtics have been scoring at ease of late, I don’t expect them to keep up their high-octane pace offensively on a consistent basis. That’s why I think Boston’s offense will come back down to Earth, while the Timberwolves look to be in a prime spot to cash yet another UNDER wager and keep the trend going.
