NBA Playoffs: Best Bet for Timberwolves-Nuggets Game 2
There are three more NBA playoff games on the docket Wednesday evening.
The Grizzlies host the Lakers, the Bucks look to draw even with the Heat at home and the Nuggets and Timberwolves will run it back for Game 2 in Denver. Stars Ja Morant (hand) and Giannis Antetokounmpo (back) are both listed as doubtful, so be sure to keep that in mind before betting on Memphis, a slight underdog against Los Angeles at home, or Milwaukee, which is still favored over Miami.
Both Nikola Jokić (wrist) and Rudy Gobert (back) are questionable for the second game of the Timberwolves-Nuggets series, in which the top seed in the West is once again favored.
Ric Tapia/Icon Sportswire
No. 8 Minnesota Timberwolves vs. No. 1 Denver Nuggets
(Denver leads series, 1-0)
Time: 7:30 p.m. ET | TNT
Spread: Timberwolves +8.5 (-110) | Nuggets -8.5 (-110)
Moneyline: MIN (+275) | DEN (-350)
Total: Under 221.5 (+100) | Over 221.5 (-118)
Timberwolves-Nuggets Best Bet: Nuggets -8.5 (-110)
Minnesota’s worst offensive showing all season came in Game 1 against Denver. The Timberwolves managed just 80 points, eight fewer than their lowest mark in the regular season. Only two starters — Anthony Edwards and Karl-Anthony Towns — finished with double-digit points and they combined to shoot 11-31 from the field.
Meanwhile, it was a dominant showing for the Nuggets, who saw all five starters score 13-plus points, including a game-high 24 from Jamal Murray, as they rolled to a 109-80 victory without putting big minutes on their rotation players. Denver outshot its opponent from the field, three-point and free-throw lines and won the rebounding battle handily. The spread for Game 2 is identical to that of the series opener, which the Nuggets covered three times over.
It’s difficult to count on a Timberwolves bounceback in this contest. Edwards is shooting 17-51 through two play-in games and one playoff game, Towns’s impact was largely neutralized and Mike Conley and Gobert were each held to eight points Sunday.
Denver is not known for its defensive prowess, so the fact that Minnesota’s top scorers had such a tough time scoring is not a good sign for the rest of the series. And Michael Malone’s offense actually underperformed last time out. Three-point shooting is one of the Nuggets’ top strengths and three-point defense is one of the T-Wolves’ biggest weaknesses, which bore out in Game 1.
Only one team has a better record against the spread at home than Denver (26–15–1) this season: Golden State (27–13–1). Bet on the Nuggets to cover the number once again at Ball Arena behind the play of the back-to-back MVP and the supporting cast in place around him.
NBA Playoffs Betting Record: 2–3
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