Minnesota Timberwolves at Los Angeles Lakers: Odds, injuries, what to watch for

The Minnesota Timberwolves continue to feel the impact of their missing stars as they visit the Los Angeles Lakers.

Minnesota Timberwolves at Los Angeles Lakers: Odds, injuries, what to watch for

The Timberwolves have lost four of their last five games. Karl-Anthony Towns has missed the last four, and D’Angelo Russell has missed three. Both stars continue to be on the health and safety protocols list and will miss Sunday night’s game against the Los Angeles Lakers.

The Lakers are still without Anthony Davis, who injured his knee the last time these two teams faced off in mid-December. That was a Wolves win at Target Center in a nationally-televised game that was also the first game missed by Anthony Edwards due to health and safety protocols.

Edwards returned to play in Friday night’s loss to the Utah Jazz and looked great on offense, even if he was a step slow defensively. The Wolves will need him to play a solid all-around game on Sunday if they’re going to beat the Lakers on the road.

For their part, the Lakers have lost six of their last eight games, only defeating the scuffling Portland Trail Blazers and bottom-feeding Houston Rockets.

Even without Towns and Russell, the matchup against the Davis-less Lakers is a winnable one.

Minnesota Timberwolves odds at Los Angeles Lakers

The Lakers are 7.5-point favorites according to WynnBet. The line might be a touch high, considering there’s no Davis for the Lakers and the Wolves are healthy besides missing Towns and Russell. It’s not like L.A. is playing great basketball right now, and the Wolves have at least been largely competitive with two of their three best players sidelined.

TV and streaming info for Minnesota Timberwolves at Los Angeles Lakers

• Tip-off: 8:30 CT
• Television: Bally Sports North
• Radio: 830 WCCO
• Stream: Fubo.tv offers streaming options

What to watch for in Minnesota Timberwolves at Los Angeles Lakers

The last time these two teams faced off, the Wolves defeated the Lakers with relative ease.

The game was at Target Center, and while Edwards didn’t play, Towns and Russell were present, and the Wolves received 17 points from Malik Beasley in his first start of the season.

Davis went out with a knee injury shortly after halftime after James pushed Jarred Vanderbilt backward and he inadvertently crashed into Davis’s knee.

The Lakers didn’t get much from James’s supporting cast. Isaiah Thomas had recently signed a 10-day deal and scored 19 points off the bench but was not re-signed when his contract expired and has since moved on to the Dallas Mavericks.

The Wolves dominated things in the paint against the Lakers last time around, outrebounding L.A. by a shocking 61-36 margin. It helped cover for some of Minnesota’s typical shooting woes; they shot just 27.3 percent from 3-point range.

While containing James and, to a significantly lesser extent, Russell Westbrook, will be a challenge for the Wolves, they should have a chance to dominate against a small Lakers team. Last time out against Portland, L.A. didn’t play any true bigs as both DeAndre Jordan and Dwight Howard didn’t see the floor.

With no Towns, the Lakers would have the option to try that strategy again, sticking to a frontcourt of James, Stanley Johnson, Carmelo Anthony, and Kent Bazemore. But that would theoretically allow Naz Reid and Greg Monroe to go to work down low and Vanderbilt to dominate on the glass.

Injury report for Minnesota Timberwolves at Los Angeles Lakers

The Wolves should only be without Towns and Russell. Edwards, Vanderbilt, Taurean Prince, and McKinley Wright IV are all listed as questionable due to return to play reconditioning, although both Edwards and Vanderbilt played last time out.

The Lakers are still without Davis and Kendrick Nunn. James is officially probable with the abdominal strain that has plagued him for some time.

We’ll be back after the game with key takeaways and player grades. Enjoy the game, and here’s to 17-19!