NBA Timberwolves vs Nuggets Prediction & Same Game Parlay picks: Nuggets hold serve at +413 odds

The 2nd Round of the NBA Playoffs gets underway tonight in the Western Conference as the Denver Nuggets host Game 1 against the Minnesota Timberwolves. The two teams split the 4 regular season meetings, who will get off to a better start here? Tip-off is at 7 pm ET on TNT, I’ve prepared a Same Game Parlay which is available below.

We should also have picks for Sunday’s games on our website shortly, head over to our NBA Picks page to see them!

Let’s dive into my bet now!

DEN Nuggets -4.5 Point Spread (-110)

Michael Porter Jr. Over 2.5 Made Threes (-154)

Rudy Gobert to Record 2+ Blocks (-115)

Same Game Parlay odds: +413

DEN Nuggets -4.5 Point Spread (-110)

These two teams were neck and neck during the regular season, with just 1 win separating them in the final standings. Each team also won a road game in head-to-head meetings, splitting the 4 games, with just 1 of them being close. For Game 1 I’d give a slight edge to the Nuggets, after all they have the experience here being the current NBA champions. Jamal Murray had enough time to heal from the calf injury that almost caused him to miss the final game vs the Lakers.

Minnesota will be happy with their 1st Round sweep of the Suns, but this series will be way different for them. They’ve been competitive in terms of covering the spread going 5-1 ATS in the last 6 meetings, but Denver has pretty much owned them at Ball Arena winning 6 of the last 7 games there. Nikola Jokic was a tough match-up for Rudy Gobert, the Serbian averaged 33.3 points and 11.8 rebounds in the 4 regular season meetings, while shooting over 58% from the field. It might take a game or two for Minnesota to come up with a proper gameplan against him, I’m taking Denver to get a statement win in the series opener.

Michael Porter Jr. Over 2.5 Made Threes (-154)

It might sound like a cliché but I really feel like Michael Porter Jr.’s contribution could be the key difference in this series. We saw what he did against the Lakers averaging 22.8 points per game on 55-48-77 shooting splits. Those type of numbers would be impressive for a number one scoring option, let alone the third option which Porter Jr. is behind Jokic and Murray. He was hitting the three-ball at a 38% rate vs Minnesota during the regular season, that’ll probably go into the mid to high 40s as the series starts with two home games for the Nuggets. Count on Porter Jr. to have a good game here.

Rudy Gobert to Record 2+ Blocks (-115)

A lot will depend on Rudy Gobert how this series pans out. The Frenchman enjoyed a very productive series against the Phoenix Suns, especially on the offensive end. This series will require an adjustment from him and that entails upping his defensive presence down low. Denver is one of the most prolific teams when it comes to paint scoring, they finished the regular season averaging 53.5 points per game down low, the 5th highest mark in the entire NBA. Stopping Nikola Jokic will be tough, but Gobert can at least use his length to make life tough on him. During the 3 regular season meetings the Timberwolves center posted an average of 2 blocks per game, we just saw him collect a pair of swats in the final game of the Suns series. Minnesota cannot afford to run with Denver here, so look for them to slow down the tempo and lure the defending champs on the inside, hopefully Gobert shows us why he is the defensive player of the year.

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