New Orleans Pelicans vs Minnesota Timberwolves Prediction & Betting Tips - NBA

Prediction published on 18/11/2023, 05:16  by Joseph King | Modified on 18/11/2023 at 06:29 in NBA Predictions

A Western Conference clash in the NBA sees the third-place Minnesota Timberwolves heading to New Orleans to take on the ninth-place Pelicans on Saturday. The Timberwolves saw their lengthy seven game winning streak come to an end in their last outing where they fell 133-115 to the Phoenix Suns. They’ll now look to close out their five game road trip with a victory before heading back home to take on the Knicks on Monday. The Timberwolves have been arguably the most impressive team of the 2023/24 season so far given their 42-40 finish last year. Minnesota currently has an 8-3 record which places them third in the West and just a half-game behind leaders Denver. The Twolves are unbeaten on their home court (5-0) but are .500 on the road with a 3-3 record. They’ll have a significant rest advantage here with their last game coming three days ago.

The Pelicans have managed two consecutive wins to recover from their five game losing streak earlier in the month. Their most recent appearance was a 115-110 win over the defending champion Nuggets to pull the Pels back to .500 on the year at 6-6. This will be the fourth in a current six-game home stand. The hosts will have the continuity and comfort advantage as they’ve been sleeping in their own beds and avoiding travel fatigue for the past week. However, they’ll be at a significant rest disadvantage here with their close win over Denver occurring on Friday night. That means the Pelicans will be playing the second leg of a back-to-back. The good news for New Orleans fans is that their team’s only other back-to-back so far this season ended in a 125-116 win over Detroit.