Lakers vs Timberwolves: Tips, Odds, and Match Preview

To analyze the results of the Lakers during the 2024-25 regular season, it’s fair to divide the team’s performances into two halves. This was one team with the LeBron James and Anthony Davis duo leading the way, and it’s been a completely different one since the team acquired Luka Dončić before the trade deadline. And the Dončić-LeBron duo will hope to carry the Lakers to another title.

However, the first step for the Lakers is to get past the Timberwolves, and Minnesota won’t be an easy team. Led by one of the young superstars in the NBA, Anthony Edwards, the Timberwolves are certainly better than what their seeding indicates. Minnesota has enough tools on both ends of the court to make things complicated for the Lakers, as evidenced by the fact that these teams split the four H2H meetings during the regular season.

Can Luka Dončić Step Up?

The Lakers pulled the trigger on the Dončić acquisition because they felt the Slovenian guard gave the team a better chance to compete for the 2024-25 NBA title. It’s hard to deny that his impact has been massive. Since joining the Lakers on Feb. 1, the five-time All-NBA First Teamer has led Los Angeles in scoring, rebounding, assists, steals, triples, and plus-minus stats.

Across his first 28 healthy regular-season games with the Lakers this year, Dončić has averaged 28.2 points, 8.1 rebounds, 7.5 assists and 1.6 steals per game while shooting 43.8 percent from the floor and 37.9 percent from three-point range. Dončić has had success against Minnesota in the past, as evidenced by the 2024 Western Conference Finals, but he needs to be at his best now that the Lakers need him the most. He usually delivers, and a healthy version of Dončić can make the Lakers unstoppable.

Lakers Injury & Suspension News

The Lakers are sweating on the fitness of Rui Hachimura, who’s dealing with a knee injury, though the Japanese-born forward is expected to be available for the series opener Saturday. Maxi Kleber (foot) is also labelled as a game-time call, but he’s not expected to have a big role in the rotation even if available.

Will the Road Woes Affect Timberwolves?

Edwards will have a particular duel against Dončić after what happened in the Western Conference Finals last season. The star guard is one of the most prolific scorers in the NBA, and the majority of the Timberwolves’ chances of pulling the upset in the series are tied to what Edwards can do on the offensive side of the ball.

The Timberwolves face a steep road ahead of them, though. They lost the two games they played against the Lakers at Crypto.com Arena, and although their 24-17 away record looks good at first glance, they have only gone 9-5 since the All-Star break — and 4-5 against teams that will feature in the first round of the 2025 NBA Playoffs since the beginning of February.

Timberwolves Injury & Suspension News

The Timberwolves aren’t reporting injuries for Game 1 of the series and should be at full strength for this matchup.

Lakers vs Timberwolves Prediction

The star players will decide the outcome of the series, and in that regard, the Lakers should have the edge thanks to their duo of Dončić and James. Expect the Slovenian guard to carry the Lakers to victory in Game 1 with an impressive performance that will set the tone for the rest of the series. Expect Dončić to finish with at least 30 points in this series opener. He reached that mark in four of his last five regular-season outings.

CryptoGamba tip: Dončić to score 30+ – 1.86 @PlayBet