The Denver Nuggets were virtually locked into the No. 1 seed in the Western Conference. All they had to do was beat the San Antonio Spurs and Memphis Grizzlies to finish the regular season. Oops. Perhaps, as defending champions, they wanted to make things harder for the challenge. Either way, the Nuggets must now face the third-seeded Minnesota Timberwolves in a tough and competitive series.
The Timberwolves finished 42-40 two seasons ago, but came under fire for paying too much to sign Rudy Gobert. They finished the season with a record of 56 wins and 26 losses, just one game behind the Nuggets. The Timberwolves boasted a top-class defense throughout the regular season, and that was largely due to the presence of Gobert.
Now, the two Giants will meet in the Western Conference semifinals. Introducing the odds, staff nominations, and preview for Saturday's first game.
All odds are from BetMGM. Find great ticket deals on StubHub.
3rd place Minnesota Timberwolves vs. 2nd place Denver Nuggets
How to watch: 7pm ET on TNT
Series odds: Nuggets -190, Timberwolves +155
Two first-round series conclude on Thursday, with Game 1 of this series being a primetime standalone treatment and a tasty kickoff to the second round of the playoffs. Denver enters the series as a favorite to advance and will be favored in Game 1.
During the regular season, the Timberwolves boasted the league's best defense and 17th-ranked offense. It was ranked 3rd in the online viewership ratings. The Nuggets had the fourth-best net rating, ranking eighth in defense and fifth in offense.
The two teams played head-to-head in a total of four games during the regular season, two at home and two on the road. Jamal Murray missed one of them, and it was a loss for Denver. Karl-Anthony Towns missed three of his contests. The only game in which both teams gave their all was on Nov. 1, when Minnesota won 110-89. Michael Porter Jr. made 2 of 11 shots in the game. The winner of each game received more fast break points.
Minnesota had the third-best record in the NBA during the regular season, going 26-15 on the road. Denver had the second-best record in the NBA at home with a 33-8 record.
Both teams have dynamic duos. Denver has Nikola Jokic and Jamal Murray, while Minnesota has Anthony Edwards and Towns. Denver's role players are more offensively oriented and complement Jokic, while Minnesota's role players are more defensively oriented.
The variety of styles makes this an attractive series.
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(Nikola Jokic photo: Ronald Martinez/Getty Images)
