Phoenix and Minnesota Dread a First-Round Exit
High Stakes Beyond Suns vs Timberwolves Betting
The dust has settled and we have our no. 3 vs no. 6 matchup for the Western Conference playoffs. The Minnesota Timberwolves will have homecourt for their series against the Phoenix Suns. This will be a battle of two styles: the “Big Three” offensive power of the Suns against the young but best defensive team in the league.
Suns vs Timberwolves betting prices have Suns -130 to win and Timberwolves +110. A series predicted to be this close will be hard to forecast. But let’s look and at what NBA betting picks we can find.
Suns vs Timberwolves 
Records: Suns (49-33) vs Timberwolves (56-26)
Day/Time:
Location: Games 1, 2, 5, 7 in Minnesota, Games 3, 4, 6 in Phoenix
Streams: ESPN, TNT
Veteran and Playoff Pedigree
The Suns finished the season on a three-game winning streak, narrowly avoiding the Play-In Tournament and beating out the New Orleans Pelicans in a tiebreaker. The Suns were led all season by their dominant scoring duo of Kevin Durant and Devin Booker, each averaging 27.1 points per game.
Suns Big 3 this season:
Booker — Durant — Beal —
27.1 PPG 27.1 PPG 18.2 PPG
4.5 RPG 6.6 RPG 4.4 RPG
6.9 APG 5.0 APG 5.0 APGThe highest scoring trio in franchise history. pic.twitter.com/rehu07d7NF
— Booker Muse (@DevinBookerMuse) April 15, 2024
Their big swing this offseason, landing former All-Star Bradley Beal, didn’t turn out as new owner Matt Ishbia hoped. The three stars only played 41 games together and barely making it out of the Play-In was certainly not up to expectations. They fell short of their season win total over/under (O/U) of 52.5 games.
Now that the Suns are in the playoffs, hope is renewed. With two All-NBA caliber players that have led teams to NBA finals, they are +900 to win the Western Conference, and +2000 to win the championship.
In last year’s playoffs, the Suns beat an injured Clippers team in the first round 4-1 and lost in the second round to the eventual champion, Denver 4-2. In their 11 playoff games last year, they were 4-7 against the spread (ATS) and 6-5 on O/U. They finished this season 35-45-2 ATS and 36-46 on O/U.
Regular Season Beasts
The Timberwolves entered their last game of the season in a three-way tie for the number one seed in the West. Unfortunately, a loss in their final game to Phoenix (and wins from the Nuggets and Thunder), landed them in the three seed.
This result, although disappointing, does not take away from the fact that they put together their second-best regular season in franchise history.
The Wolves finished the season with a 108.4 defensive rating (by far the best in the league) and were 17th in offensive efficiency. After a lackluster first season following the blockbuster trade for Rudy Gobert, the Timberwolves team vision has come together.
Rudy Gobert will win his fourth Defensive Player of the Year, and more importantly, the team seems to be gelling in a way that many didn’t expect.
Led by the defense of Gobert and the offensive punch of young star Anthony Edwards, the Timberwolves survived without their star Karl-Anthony Towns over the last couple of months of the season. They went 12-6 in his absence, and now he is back, getting two games under his belt before the playoffs.
The Timberwolves’ odds to win the Western Conference and Finals are the same as the Suns: +900 to win the West and +2000 to win it all. The Timberwolves finished their season 40-41-1 ATS and 41-40-1 on the totals (O/U).
Last year in the playoffs the Timberwolves lost 4-1 to the Denver Nuggets. Although they managed one playoff win, many thought they put up a fight against Denver better than anyone else.
RUDY GOBERT FOR DEFENSIVE PLAYER OF THE YEAR.
▪️leader of the best defense in the NBA
▪️1st in defensive rating (104.2)
▪️1st in defensive win shares (5.9)
▪️2nd in rebounding (13.0 RPG)
▪️4th in defensive rebounds (9.2 RPG)
▪️6th in blocks (2.1 BPG)
▪️2nd in 15+ REB games (29) pic.twitter.com/0CHeBPlWwX— Minnesota Timberwolves (@Timberwolves) April 13, 2024
Suns Lower Seeded Favorite
Phoenix went 3-0 winning each meeting by ten or more points. On top of that, Phoenix is 9-1 in their last ten games against Minnesota. Right now the Suns vs Timberwolves betting odds are almost even, Suns -130 to win and Timberwolves +110. The Timberwolves are slight underdogs despite having a much better regular season along with homecourt advantage.
It is hard to ignore the Phoenix Suns play against the Timberwolves recently. Both these teams will enter the playoffs healthy. However, the collective playoff experience of the Suns allows them to punch a less experienced Minnesota team in the mouth early and not let up.
We think the Suns will grab one of the first two games in Minnesota, meaning if Minnesota can handle the pressure, this series has the potential to go long. Odds for this series to go seven games is +225 and to go six games is +175.
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