The Minnesota Timberwolves may be facing the reigning champs, but it hasn't slowed them down a bit. The Timberwolves are now 6-0 in the Playoffs, with an average winning margin of 15.5 points.
Minnesota won game 2 by 26 points without Rudy Gobert, who missed for the birth of his son. Gobert is active for Friday night's Game 3.
If Denver is going to get back into this series they will need better play from Jamal Murray. After averaging 24 PPG in Round 1, Murray is averaging just 12.5 PPG while shooting 28%.
Through the first 2 games of this series, the Timberwolves are 2-0 against the spread, with both games finishing under the total. The Nuggets have now failed to cover the spread in 5 of their last 6 games.
The Nuggets opened as a 4-point underdog and early action is moving this line away from them as most sportsbooks have the spread set at 4.5 points. The total opened at 204.5 at most sportsbooks, with Caesars sitting at 204 and FanDuel at 205.
The Denver Nuggets looked terrible in Game 2, setting us up for great buy-low opportunity here in Game 3. We had a long layoff between games, allowing the Nuggets some time to rest and makes some in-series adjustments.
It's worth noting that these teams split the regular season series, with one of the Nuggets' losses coming in Minnesota without Jamal Murray.
Denver has scored at least 97 points in every game since February, indicating the 80 point Game 2 performance was an offensive anomaly. If they can jump out early and quiet the Minnesota crowd, they could put some pressure on this young Timberwolves team and steal Game 3.
With Denver coming out with nothing to lose after getting demolished in Games 1 and 2 at home, expect Coach Malone to trap and harass Edwards early in this game. While they could get under his skin, ANT’s patience will lead to assist opportunities for the Wolves, who have found success from downtown in this postseason. This prop has hit in four of six Minnesota playoff games, including both times at home.
We don’t expect Jaden McDaniels’ role on the Wolves to change this series. A pesky defender that gives up offensive energy and opportunities for his relentless defense from 95-feet out or at the rim against Jamal Murray, Michael Porter Jr., and Jokic that doesn’t allow for an easy look. Other than two outlier games where McDaniels lit Phoenix up for 18 & 25, he hasn’t scored more than 11 points since late March. With Naz Reid and NAW getting added looks on the offensive end, look for McDaniels to continue to put most of his energy into stopping this once “unstoppable” Denver offense.