The 2025-26 NBA season is underway, and two teams that had different results in their opening games face off tonight in a Western Conference clash. In that matchup, the Minnesota Timberwolves face the Los Angeles Lakers in a rematch of their first-round playoff series last year. The Timberwolves eliminated the Lakers in five games before advancing to the Western Conference Finals, where the eventual champion Oklahoma City Thunder eliminated them in five games. It was the second year in a row that Minnesota was knocked out of the conference finals in five games, losing to the Dallas Mavericks in 2024.
Minnesota was the No. 3 team in the Northwest Division in 2025, finishing the regular season with a 49-33 mark. The Timberwolves opened the 2025-26 campaign with a 118-114 win over the Portland Trail Blazers on the road.
Los Angeles finished in first place in the Pacific Division last season, going 50-32. The Lakers lost their opening game of this season, losing 119-109 at home to the Golden State Warriors.
The Timberwolves and the Lakers met four times during the 2024-25 regular season. The teams split the series 2-2, with each team winning their two home games.
| Teams |  |  |  |
|---|---|---|---|
| Minnesota Timberwolves | -150 | -150 | -150 |
| Los Angeles Lakers | +130 | +130 | +130 |
| Minnesota -2.5 | -115 | -105 | -115 |
| Los Angeles +2.5 | -105 | -115 | -105 |
| Over 225 Points | -110 | -110 | -110 |
| Under 225 Points | -110 | -110 | -110 |
The Minnesota Timberwolves have been very good over the past two years, reaching the Western Conference Finals in each season. However, the club has fallen short of the NBA Finals in each of those matchups, dropping series to the Dallas Mavericks and Oklahoma City Thunder. The Timberwolves are looking to get over that hump in the 2025-26 NBA season.
Minnesota did not have a great regular season in 2024-25, entering the playoffs as the No. 6 seed, but the team performed outstandingly in the postseason, beating the Lakers and the Golden State Warriors before falling to the Thunder. In the offseason, the Timberwolves re-signed Bones Hyland, Joe Ingles, Julius Randle, and Naz Reid, which means all six of the team’s double-figure scorers from last year are on the roster for this season.
The key player on the Timberwolves is Anthony Edwards. He finished last year fourth in the NBA with 27.6 points per game, and his highest three-point percentage of 39.5. In the opening game of the season, Edwards set a franchise record with 41 points in a Minnesota season opener.
The Los Angeles Lakers won the Pacific Division via a tiebreaker. To get there, the Lakers went 6-4 in the final 10 games of the regular season. The big addition for the club, Luka Doncic, helped the club greatly, averaging 28.2 points per game while pulling down 8.1 rebounds and dishing 7.5 assists in his 28 games with Los Angeles. The good news for the Lakers is that Doncic will be with the team for a full season in 2025-26; the bad news is that Los Angeles will be without LeBron James to start the season due to sciatica. The news on James broke on October 10. He is scheduled to be re-evaluated in three to four weeks. James did not participate in a full practice during training camp.
Another player to keep an eye on is Austin Reeves, who is entering a contract year.
Other deals the team made to improve over the summer were free agent deals for 2018 No. 1 overall pick Deandre Ayton, 2021-22 Kia Defensive Player of the Year Marcus Smart, and Jake LaRavia.
In the opening game loss to the Warriors, Doncic put up an impressive 43 points, but spent a lot of time after the game getting treated for a groin issue. Doncic downplayed the potential injury as “probably nothing,” but with James out of action and Doncic leading the team in nearly every important stat in the first game of the season (minutes, points, rebounds, assists, steals, and blocks), the Lakers cannot afford to have a hampered Doncic on the court against Minnesota.
The Minnesota Timberwolves are deeper, healthier and better on both ends of the court. Yes, the Los Angeles Lakers have home court advantage for tonight’s game, but that will not be enough for them to get the win.
The betting pick is for the Minnesota Timberwolves to beat the Los Angeles Lakers.
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