The Denver Nuggets enter the NBA playoffs as the top seed in the Western Conference but they figure to be tested by the Minnesota Timberwolves. The two teams open their best of seven first round series Sunday night in the Mile High City.
Tip-off is set for 10:30 p.m. ET at Ball Arena where Denver is favored by -7.5 points and -345 on the moneyline. The total is 224.5.
Denver Nuggets (53-29, #1 seed)
The Nuggets’ hopes for a deep postseason run will come down to health. MVP candidate Nikola Jokic missed several games down the stretch with a tight calf but says he is fine.
Jokic put up numbers worthy of another Michael Jordan Award with 29 triple-doubles, and he nearly averaged a triple-double, finishing with 24.5 points, 11.8 rebounds and 9.8 assists. He’s a finalist for the MVP award again.
No idea if it's a record, but Nikola Jokic having 3 game-saving blocks in the last 6 seconds of games in one season is kind of crazy.
Throw in Barton's vs. Minnesota (https://t.co/o3T7UvulZ8) & the Nuggets have 4 as a team. pic.twitter.com/oJa1eUut3P
— John Schuhmann (@johnschuhmann) February 13, 2022
The Nuggets were 34-7 this season, a game shy of the Memphis Grizzlies for the NBA’s best home-court record.
History is the great teacher
Denver became the first No. 8 seed to win a series when it upset the Seattle SuperSonics in 1994. The Nuggets were playing without pressure that season, but they have to face the burden of expectations in 2023.
The Nuggets are a No. 1 seed for the first time since joining the NBA, but the franchise knows the perils of being the Western Conference’s top team.
Minnesota Timberwolves (43-41, #8 seed)
The Wolves aren’t your typical eighth seed, just happy to reach the playoffs. They were just four wins shy of being the No. 4 seed and they went 20-15 against the top 10 teams in the West.
Minnesota used a 120-95 blowout of Oklahoma City on Friday to grab the final spot in the playoffs. Karl Anthony Townes, who missed 52 games this season with a severe calf strain, had 28 points and 11 rebounds to lead the way. He’ll get a severe test against Jokic and the rest of Denver’s big frontcourt.
Karl-Anthony Towns vs Denver
25 points 10 rebounds pic.twitter.com/MNwsecgvrr
— A Wolf Among Wolves (@AWAWBlog) December 21, 2017
Regular season meetings
The teams split four games in the regular season, with each winning on its home court. However there were caveats to those games. The Timberwolves didn’t have Towns available in any of the four games. And Point guard Mike Conley is in the rotation after coming over in a trade-deadline deal.
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