Game 1 of the best of 7 series between the Dallas Mavericks and Minnesota Timberwolves is set to take place on Wednesday. This is the Western Conference Finals, with the winner of this series heading to the NBA Finals. There, they will take on either the Boston Celtics or Indiana Pacers.
The 5th seeded Dallas Mavericks went 50-32 in the regular season. Dallas have won both the first two series in the postseason in six games. The first series was over the Los Angeles Clippers. The last one was over Oklahoma City. Dallas was hot down the stretch; winning 7 out of their final 10 games.
Minnesota, who was one of the biggest surprises in all of the National Basketball Association finished with a 56-26 record this season. The Timberwolves fell in their final regular season game, which put them third in the standings. Minnesota swept the Phoenix Suns in four games, and then beat the defending NBA Champion Denver Nuggets in 7 games.
The Minnesota Timberwolves are -4.5 at home over the Dallas Mavericks in this game on Wednesday.
Road Warriors – Dallas Mavericks
The Dallas Mavericks saw PJ Washington nail a pair of free throws in the final seconds to eliminate Oklahoma City. Washington only 9 points in this game, but went three straight games in the series with 20+ points, and three times had 10+ rebounds in a game.
Luka Doncic scored 29 in the Game 6 win. He scored 31 in the Game 5 win on the road. His best game in the postseason was in Game 5 against the Clippers. In that game, he scored 35 points, recorded 7 rebounds, and dished out 10 assists. In the regular season, he played 70 games and scored 33.9 per game, and dished out 9.8 assists per game.
The Mavericks ranked 7th in the league in scoring. The Mavericks scored 117.9 points per game. Dallas was third with nearly 15 three point shots made per game. Dallas limited their turnovers most of the season as well, with just 12.1 per game.
Home Team – Minnesota Timberwolves
The Minnesota Timberwolves trailed Denver by 15 points at halftime of Game 7. The Timberwolves held Denver to just 37 second points, and came back to win by 8. Minnesota was terrific all season on the defensive side. That also was shown in the Game 6 win, where Denver was held to just 9 fourth quarter points.
Minnesota is led by Anthony Edwards. The guard has had some epic postseason games this spring. Edwards went for 44 in Game 4, but that came after back to back 40+ games in Game 4 against the Suns and 1 against Denver. During the regular season, he scored 25.9 points per game, missing just four games all season.
Karl Anthony Towns was big in the Game 7 win. He scored 23 points and ripped down 12 rebounds. It was his second straight double double, and fourth of the series. Jaden McDaniels had a monster Game 7 as well, scoring 21 points in the game.
Dallas on the Road
This is going to be a fun series. Anthony Edwards gets a chance at Luka Doncic. Luka is such a crafty, but skilled player. He is hard to guard and slow down. Edwards is a scoring machine, and seems to be quite motivated. What a game. Look for a thriller.
We like Dallas to cover the spread in this game. Our final bet for this game is the Dallas Mavericks +4.5 over the Minnesota Timberwolves on Wednesday.
