Best Timberwolves vs. Lakers Player Props, ATS Bets: LA On The Ropes

Following close losses on the road in Games 3 and 4, the Lakers (3) return home tonight for a must-win clash with the Timberwolves (6).

Anthony Edwards, 23, is by far the youngest of the three superstars in this series. But he was arguably the best player on the court in Game 3, with 29 points, eight rebounds and eight assists — and there was no question about who owned Game 4 on Sunday afternoon.

With 43 points, nine rebounds and six assists in his team’s thrilling 116-113 win, Edwards continued a massive postseason to date.

While it would be an understatement to call this series Edwards and Minnesota’s to lose at this point (as the series odds below show), closing out the Lakers in Game 5 will not be easy.

Timberwolves vs. Lakers Series Winner Odds

• DraftKings: MIN -475; LAL +360
• FanDuel: MIN -500; LAL +385

Timberwolves vs. Lakers Game 5 Betting Odds

How to Watch Wolves vs. Lakers Game 5

• Tipoff: 10 p.m. ET
• Channel: TNT/truTV/Max

Best Wolves vs. Lakers Game 5 Player Props

Anthony Edwards Over 5.5 Assists (+125 at bet365) — 1 unit

We’re not exactly going out on a limb by predicting that Edwards will face a ton of double-teams after hanging 72 points combined on the Lakers in Games 3 (29 points) and 4 (43 points).

He had eight assists in Game 3 and six more in Game 4, and based on potential assists, those numbers could have been even higher.

Edwards was credited by NBA.com with 12 potential assists in Game 4, and throughout this four-game series, he’s totaled just 23 dimes (5.8 per game) on 41 total potential assists per game (10.25 potential assists per game).

Another encouraging sign for Edwards’ assist props tonight is his adjusted assists total of 30, which includes seven adjusted assists (when a pass leads to a trip to the free throw line instead of a bucket).

Based on the four games we’ve seen in this series, there’s a good chance that Game 2 was an outlier in a number of ways. The Wolves lost that one 94-85 on 38 percent FG shooting (including 5-for-25 from 3), as Edwards finished with 0 assists for the first time all season.

Forcing the ball out of Edwards’ hands will A) be easier said than done for the Lakers and B) it will not necessarily prevent the Wolves from getting good looks, but it trapping and/or doubling Edwards should still be a huge part of Lakers coach JJ Redick’s game plan.

Wolves vs. Lakers Game 5 Pick, Best Bets

Oddsmakers listing LeBron James, Luka Doncic and the Lakers as the favorites at home in a must-win game makes sense to some extent. That being said, it’s hard to shake the feeling that Redick is running out of answers against a much deeper, opponent.

The Wolves winning Game 3 despite a 38-point night by James and Game 4 despite the Lakers making 19 triples as a team (while getting 65 total points from James and Doncic) makes it hard to see the Lakers winning any more games in this series comfortably.

So, while James and Doncic coming out red-hot to force a Game 6 is a real possibility, the opportunity to take Minnesota +5.5 is nevertheless tempting.

And remember, the Wolves have been dominant in the fourth quarter of all four games:

• Game 1 4Q: MIN 23, LAL 17
• Game 2 4Q: MIN 20, LAL 13
• Game 3 4Q: MIN 30, LAL 20
• Game 4 4Q: MIN 32, LAL 19

That makes it tough to see the Lakers covering this spread.

So, give me the desperate Lakers to start off strong and cover the first-half spread, but the Wolves to cover (assuming they don’t have an awful shooting night).

Timberwolves vs. Lakers Game 5 Best Bets:

• Lakers 1H -4 (-108 at DraftKings) — 0.5 units
• Timberwolves +5.5 (-106 at FanDuel) — 0.5 units

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