Minnesota Timberwolves vs Boston Celtics Prediction, Preview and Odds - 12/23/2022

Game Time: 7:30 pm ET, Friday, December 23, 2022

Venue:  TD Garden, Boston, MA 

Where to Watch:  NBCS-BOS

DraftKings:  Point Spread:  Timberwolves +8.5, Celtics -8.5; Over/Under:  232.5 points

Bet365:  Point Spread:  Timberwolves +8.5, Celtics -8.5; Over/Under:  232.5 points

BetMGM:  Point Spread:  Timberwolves +8.5, Celtics -8.5; Over/Under:  232.5 points

 

Minnesota Timberwolves:  16-16 (4th place, Northwest Division)

Boston Celtics:  22-10 (1st place, Atlantic Division)

 

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Minnesota Timberwolves:  5-5 last 10

Boston Celtics:  4-6 last 10

 

The Timberwolves are coming into this game with a 16-16 record overall and they are 7-8 in their road games this season where they will be in this game. They are entering this game off of a loss against the Dallas Mavericks in their last game. Anthony Edwards led the team in points in that game with 23 while Austin Rivers was next on the team with 21 points. D'Angelo Russell led the team in assists in that game with 8 while Rudy Gobert led the team in rebounds with 15. They were 49.4% from the field, 26.7% from 3-point range, and 70% from the free throw line with their shots in that game. Their offense is averaging 114.9 PPG and their defense is allowing their opponents to average 115.5 PPG against them. The Timberwolves have an ATS record of 13-19 this season and their O/U record is 13-19.

 

 

 

The Celtics are coming into this game with a 22-10 record overall and they are 11-5 in their home games this season where they will be in this game. They are entering this game on a 3 game losing streak with losses coming against the Orlando Magic twice in a row and the Indiana Pacers in their last game. Jayson Tatum led the team in points in that game with 41 while Jaylen Brown was next on the team with 19 points. Malcolm Brogdon led the team in assists in that game with 7 while Robert Williams III led the team in rebounds with 12. They were 38.6% from the field, 31.7% from 3-point range, and 84% from the free throw line with their shots in that game. Their offense is averaging 118 PPG and their defense is allowing their opponents to average 112.3 PPG against them. The Celtics have an ATS record of 18-14 this season and their O/U record is 15-15-2.

The current betting odds have the Timberwolves listed as an 8.5 point underdog in this game according to Draftkings Sportsbook. The Timberwolves didn't get off to a great start this season after making some big splashes in the off-season but they are starting to get a little hot now with some wins in their last few games. They are still missing some key players in this game like their star player KAT but they will have Rudy Gobert in this game which will help out against a struggling Celtics team. The Celtics got off to a great start this season as they were leading the NBA for quite some time but they have dropped to 2nd place in the East now and partly because they have been terrible in their games over the last week. They have lost 3 games in a row now and 2 of those were at home to the Magic who have one of the worst records in the NBA this season. They have been good at home this year with an 11-5 home record but they haven't been good in those games lately and the Timberwolves are just playing a lot better than the struggling Celtics right now. Even if the Celtics bounce back and win this game, they are not going to blowout the T-Wolves here or win by double digits in this game. The best way to place a bet here is on the Timberwolves to cover the spread in this game.

 

Timberwolves Celtics Prediction:  Our NBA Pick for Friday, December 23, 2022 (7:30 pm ET start time) is Celtics 124 Timberwolves 118.

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Minnesota Timberwolves: 13-19 ATS in all games. 8-1 UNDER after playing 2 consecutive home games. 12-7 UNDER after a game where both teams scored 105 points or less.

Boston Celtics: 8-1 ATS after 3 or more consecutive losses. 9-2 ATS off 2 or more consecutive upset losses as a favorite. 9-2 UNDER when the total is greater than or equal to 230.

 

 

Minnesota Timberwolves:  K. Anderson (SF) Ques Fri - Back. T. Prince (SF) Early Jan - Shoulder. J. McLaughlin (PG) Out indefinitely - Calf. K. Towns (C) Mid Jan - Calf.

Boston Celtics:  M. Smart (PG) Ques Fri - Illness. D. Gallinari (SF) out for season - Knee.

 

 

 

“They got us a little, they picked on our scheme a little bit there. But what hurt tonight was our inability to put the ball in the basket. I mean, it came down to offense hurt us tonight.” - Chris Finch after his team’s loss against the Mavericks in their game on Wednesday.

 

 

“We just didn't play with a great sense of urgency, didn't play with awareness and didn't play with a sense of details.” - Joe Mazzulla after his team’s loss against the Pacers in their game on Wednesday.

 

 

 

PG D'Angelo Russell

SG Anthony Edwards

SF Jaden McDaniels

PF Kyle Anderson 

C Rudy Gobert

 

PG Marcus Smart

SG Derrick White

SF Jaylen Brown

PF Jayson Tatum

C Al Horford

 

 

PPG: A. Edwards (23)

APG: D. Russell (6.4)

Reb/G: R. Gobert (12.3)

 

PPG: J. Tatum (30.6)

APG: M. Smart (7.3)

Reb/G: J. Tatum (8.1)

 

Coaches:

Minnesota Timberwolves: Chris Finch (3rd season)

Boston Celtics: Joe Mazzulla (1st season)