Houston Rockets vs Minnesota Timberwolves Prediction 1/16/26 NBA Picks Today

The Minnesota Timberwolves travel to the Toyota Center to battle the Houston Rockets on Friday night.

The Minnesota Timberwolves have been in great form as they’ve won six of their last seven games overall and they will be aiming for a third straight victory after getting trampled by the Bucks in a 139-106 road win on Tuesday. With Anthony Edwards out of the lineup, Julius Randle led the team with 29 points, eight rebounds and six assists on 12 of 18 shooting, Bones Hyland added 23 points with five assists off the bench while Naz Reid chipped in with 19 points on eight of 12 shooting. As a team, the Timberwolves shot a sizzling 60 percent from the field and 22 of 42 from the 3-point line as they hit the ground running with 76 points in the first half to take a 31-point lead into halftime which allowed them to rest their starters early and give extended minutes to their reserves.

Meanwhile, the Houston Rockets have been in a rut lately as they’ve dropped four of their last five games overall and they will be hoping for a better effort after getting humbled by the Thunder in a 111-91 home defeat last night. Kevin Durant led the team with 19 points, seven rebounds and three assists, Jabari Smith Jr added 17 points with 10 rebounds while Alperen Sengun chipped in with 14 points, 13 rebounds and five assists. As a team, the Rockets shot just 34 percent from the field and seven of 24 from the 3-point line as they played scrappy defense through three quarters to stay within striking distance, but they let themselves down in the fourth quarter where they got outscored by 34-16 to get blown out in their own building. Kevin Durant had a rough shooting night as he shot just seven of 23 from the field and zero of five from the 3-point line while Amen Thompson shot just four of 16 from the field for his 13 points.

The Timberwolves will again be playing without the injured Anthony Edwards, while the Rockets have ruled out Dorian Finney-Smith and Tari Eason once again. The Timberwolves are heading into this confidence full of confidence after smashing the Bucks in their last game without their leading scorer and they will like their chances against this stumbling Rockets team who are now playing their second game of a back to back set. I would be comfortable backing the Rockets to bounce back if they were in better form, but they have been well below their best lately and I think the shorthanded Timberwolves are good enough to take advantage.