If you’re not hyped for this Western Conference showdown between the Denver Nuggets and the Minnesota Timberwolves, then you’re not a hoops fan (unless you’re a LeBron fan and simply salty the Lakers got the boot again, then I get it. Most LeBron fans aren’t real hoops fans anyway lol). Burn🔥
I digress. Will miss slandering and trolling the LeBroniacs, so one last post-elimination dig won’t hurt 😃
Come on, man! Joker vs Ant Man!!!
Last year, the Timberwolves were a speed bump on the way to the crown; now, they're a pebble in the Nuggets' shoe in their quest to repeat as NBA Champs.
This is going to be a heavyweight showdown between two legitimate championship contenders that are both peaking and firing on all cylinders at the right time.
Here's a recap of the regular season matchups between the Denver Nuggets and Minnesota Timberwolves:
* April 10, 2024: Nuggets beat Timberwolves 116-107 in Denver
* March 28, 2024: Timberwolves beat Nuggets 111-98 in Denver
* March 19, 2024: Nuggets beat Timberwolves 115-112 in Minnesota
* November 1, 2023: Timberwolves beat Nuggets 110-89 in Minnesota
Ant Man and his gang has an ax to grind with Joker and the Nuggets, they were after all resposible for ending their season last year in the First Round of Playoffs, 4-1, similar to LeBron and the Lakers’ fate this year.
“We see them four times a year. We saw them in the playoffs last year," Murray said about their new showdown with the Wolves. "We know what they like to do, and they know what we like to do. I think the series will be decided on who can do a better job of taking away the strengths of the other team."
Former Nuggets guard Bruce Brown, who moved to the Pacers after their title run then got swapped out for Pascal Siakam, said Minessota was the toughest of the four rounds.
Edwards missed a jumper at the buzzer of Game 5 last year that would have forced overtime, and the Timberwolves have built upon that experience.
They swept Phoenix in the first round - after losing all three games to the Suns in the regular season - and looked scary good doing it. They are rested and relatively healthy, led by Edwards, who has became the go-to guy this season after KAT was injured in the regular season.
Health is always a key in the playoffs, and the Timberwolves' biggest injury is to head coach Chris Finch. He suffered a ruptured patella tendon in his right knee in the closing seconds of Game 4 against the Suns and had it surgically repaired Wednesday.
Health will also determine how far the Nuggets go. Kentavious Caldwell-Pope, who will likely draw the defensive assignment on Edwards, sprained his ankle in Game 5 against the Los Angeles Lakers on Monday night but stayed in the game, albeit clearly hobbled.
A more serious concern is Murray's left calf. He talked his way into playing Monday despite being compromised by it, and his persuasive argument resulted in him eliminating Los Angeles with a game-winning jumper with 3.6 seconds left in a 108-106 victory.
The Nuggets' chances of winning the series will greatly diminish without Murray, and they will have to lean even more on presumptive MVP Nikola Jokic, who will battle with Towns and Rudy Gobert up front.
Game 1 is today, Saturday 4pm Pacific / 7pm ET.
How #dSourceTradamus👁 is betting this series:
I’m taking a couple of extra points and parlay it with the Pacers as pictured for almost 3x return.