We’re heading towards an utterly exciting Game 3 between the Los Angeles Lakers and Minnesota Timberwolves on Friday night as the series shifts to the Midwest, and after a stellar defensive performance from L.A. it would seem this series is up for grabs.
I’m liking both offenses coming into this one, and that should open the door to play a few Lakers vs. Timberwolves props for Game 3 on Friday.
Let’s get into my NBA picks for April 25.
Best Lakers vs Timberwolves props
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McDaniels Over 5.5 rebounds (+110 at bet365) - Randle Over 18.5 points (-110 at bet365)
Doncic Over 3.5 made threes (+100 at bet365)
Lakers vs Timberwolves player props for April 25
Jaden McDaniels Over 5.5 rebounds (+110 at bet365)
It’s very evident that the Minnesota Timberwolves are going to be leaning on their big, physical forwards in this series. One man who’s played a ton is Jaden McDaniels, whose defense has the potential to turn this series on its head, and his 35.5 minutes per game represent a huge increase from what we saw down the stretch.
McDaniels has averaged almost seven boards per game in this series, and while he only hit this mark twice against L.A. those outings just so happened to come in the two games he played significant minutes. He was held to two boards in the two he played 22 or fewer minutes, and when given 36+ minutes he went for eight and nine boards, respectively.
The Los Angeles Lakers have struggled on the glass all year, and even though they rose to 14th in April; they’re up against a huge challenge with Minnesota standing tall as one of the best rebounding teams in the league.
This is the one guy whose total isn’t incredibly inflated from what we’ve seen in this series, and it would be a shock if he’s not trotted back out for significant run.
Julius Randle Over 18.5 points (-110 at bet365)
Julius Randle exploded for 27 points in Minnesota’s Game 2 loss to the Lakers, and in that one he wound up seeing 39 minutes despite finding himself in foul trouble with five personals. He’s averaging 37 minutes per game despite picking up nine total fouls thus far, so if that comes down to Earth there’s a chance he plays even more in this one.
As we noted, the Timberwolves are going to lean on their length to win this series, and down low they can get plenty of work done with the Lakers ranking just 13th against shots at the rim in April. This is one of the best units in the league when it comes to rim scoring, and in a shocking twist they’ve had the least success down low of any team in the playoffs.
I’d expect that to turn around with what we’ve seen all season from the Lakers, who were bottom-five in defending the rim and traded away Anthony Davis on top of all that – and Randle should eat here as a result.
Luka Doncic Over 3.5 made threes (+100 at bet365)
L.A.’s offensive rating sits around 107 through the early part of the series, and it wasn’t until Luka Doncic scored 31 on Tuesday that things begun to turn around. This team is shooting just over 30% from deep to grade out as one of the weakest offenses from the perimeter in the playoffs, and it’s continued to rely heavily upon shooting from the mid-range which has hurt its efficiency numbers this season.
Going from hitting almost everything in the last month of the year to struggling from deep has been a massive story in this series, and on the flip side Minnesota had ranked just 19th in defending the three in that same time which has been just as much of a surprise.
Now, the Timberwolves did rank sixth against the three this season, so perhaps there’s reason to believe this edge will remain. We do know shooting variance kicks in this time of year as well, and it would be a shocker if the Lakers don’t find their touch again in this series, which leads me to believe their offense should kick back into gear.
With all of that said, Doncic is going to be the man to pull L.A. out of its slump. He’s averaging nine three-point attempts per game in this series to lead the team, and he’s one of the few guys who hasn’t totally lost his touch from outside with 38.9% of his looks going down.
Doncic has now hit this mark in three of his last five games and while he’s struggled against Minnesota this season I think this is the night to back him.
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