Detroit Pistons vs Minnesota Timberwolves Prediction & Match Preview - December 23rd, 2020 | NBA Season 2020-21

The Minnesota Timberwolves will play host to the Detroit Pistons in their NBA regular season opener on Wednesday night. This will be one of the thirteen games played across the league on December 23rd as we kick off the 2020-21 NBA regular season.

Match Details

Fixture: Detroit Pistons vs. Minnesota Timberwolves - NBA Regular Season Game

Date & Time: Wednesday, December 23rd, 2020, 8 PM ET

Venue: Target Center, Minneapolis, MN

Check out the complete 2020-21 NBA Schedule right here.

The Minnesota Timberwolves and the Detroit Pistons had a season to forget last year. The Pistons finished with a 20-46 record, placing 13th in the Eastern Conference. The Timberwolves were slightly worse, finishing with a 19-45 record on their way to 14th in the Western Conference standings.

Both teams will be looking to make improvements to their record and will likely find themselves fighting for a playoff spot at the end of the season.

Detroit Pistons Preview

The Detroit Pistons have been actively making improvements to their roster, signing Blake Griffin and Derrick Rose in recent years. However, these moves have simply not been enough.

The Pistons found themselves near the bottom of the standings last year, with one of the lowest-ranked offenses in all of basketball.

Toronto Raptors v Detroit Pistons

This year could be slightly different for the Detroit Pistons. They will have a team full of fresh faces this season, with 11 of their 15 players on the roster entering their first season in Detroit.

The Pistons were predicted to have the number 1 defense in the NBA in the preseason power rankings, while ranking 29th on offense, as per this NBA.com article. This truly is a tale of two teams- an offense and a defense- and the Pistons will need to compromise and find a way to win this season.

Key Player - Blake Griffin

Blake Griffin will need to have a big night for the Detroit Pistons on Wednesday, assuming the role of captain of this offense.

Griffin had a decent year for the Pistons last season but will be looking to get back to his dominant ways this season.

The Killian Hayes-Blake Griffin has been fun so far this year pic.twitter.com/VL60U99EuP

— Jackson Frank (@jackfrank_jjf) December 14, 2020

Blake Griffin has been transitioning his game into more of a playmaking dynamic recently, but he still has tremendous athletic ability and explosive moves to the rim.

He should have a big night against the Minnesota Timberwolves in what is set to be a battle until the end.

Detroit Pistons Predicted Lineup

G Killian Hayes, G Delon Wright, F Jerami Grant, F Blake Griffin, C Mason Plumlee

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Minnesota Timberwolves Preview

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The Minnesota Timberwolves, who have made the playoffs once in the past ten years, have been trying to improve their roster more urgently lately. The additions of players such as Karl Anthony-Towns and Ricky Rubio have helped the Timberwolves immensely, but they still cannot find the way to a winning season.

The Timberwolves will look to start their season on the right track against the also-struggling Detroit Pistons.

Key Player - Karl-Anthony Towns

Coming off the best season of his career, Karl-Anthony Towns is returning to the Minnesota Timberwolves for his 6th season.

Towns averaged a double-double last season, with a very impressive average of 26.5 points and 10.8 rebounds per game.

This year, NBA superstar Karl Anthony-Towns lost his mother and six relatives to Covid.She was his rock — and watched every game.In his first game back, he broke down in tears and couldn't get off the bench.So his teammates lifted him up.pic.twitter.com/9EgNSZYpZS

— Goodable (@Goodable) December 14, 2020

Karl-Anthony Towns had a rough offseason, losing his mother to complications from COVID-19. He has been strong through the entire process and will now need to be a key factor for the Timberwolves all season.

Minnesota Timberwolves Predicted Lineup

G D'Angelo Russell, G Malik Beasley, F Josh Okogie, F Jake Layman, C Karl-Anthony Towns

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Pistons vs. Timberwolves Prediction

This game should be very close, as both the Minnesota Timberwolves and the Detroit Pistons have struggled in their own regard. If I had to decide which team was stronger, I would say the Timberwolves take a slight edge. I predict a very close game that will end in victory for Minnesota.

Where to watch Pistons vs. Timberwolves

The game will be broadcast on the local Fox Sports North channel. Alternatively, NBA fans can catch the action from anywhere through NBA League Pass.