Game 1 of the Western Conference Finals is set to begin on Wednesday night as the Dallas Mavericks are set to visit the Minnesota Timberwolves. Both of these teams had to pull off an upset in the previous round in order to set the stage for this matchup.
Dallas has actually pulled off two straight upsets in the NBA Playoffs as they are the number five seed in the Western Conference. This is the second appearance in the Western Conference Finals for the Mavericks in the last three seasons.
Minnesota has been the most impressive team so far in the NBA Playoffs as they have two huge wins. The Timberwolves swept the Phoenix Suns in the First Round and then eliminated the defending champion Denver Nuggets last round.
The Minnesota Timberwolves are 4.5-point betting favorites over the Dallas Mavericks in this Game 1 matchup on Wednesday night.
Dallas Playing Some Defense
The Dallas Mavericks are scoring just 106.5 points per game during the playoffs, but that has been good enough up to this point. It has been the defense of Dallas that is leading the way for this team, and that will have to be a major key moving forward.
The Mavericks were extremely physical with the OKC Thunder, but they will need to find a way to protect the rim more in this matchup. Luka Doncic continues to lead the way for the Mavericks with 27.2 points, 9.7 rebounds, and 9.1 assists per game.
Dallas has gotten some great work from some of their bench players at times throughout the playoffs, but this is not a series that is going to be won on offense.
Minnesota Has Momentum
The Minnesota Timberwolves come into this series with a ton of momentum after knocking out the Denver Nuggets in a huge Game 7 win. Minnesota has been building this team for the last few years, and things have come together in a major way.
Anthony Edwards has transformed into a star in the NBA, and he is leading the way with 28.9 points per game so far in the postseason. The Timberwolves also have a ton of talent coming off of the bench and they are loaded with size.
Minnesota is a team that can be nasty on defense, and the Timberwolves will be throwing extra defenders at Doncic throughout the series.
Timberwolves Take Series Opener
The Dallas Mavericks were able to do just enough on offense to beat the Oklahoma City Thunder, but things will get much tougher in this series. Dallas is going to be at a huge disadvantage in this series, and that will lead to some problems on both ends of the floor.
Minnesota has been riding Anthony Edwards throughout this postseason run, and he is going to be able to take advantage of the Mavericks in this series. The Timberwolves can’t afford to lose a home game in this series, and their crowd will be ready.
Bet the Minnesota Timberwolves -4.5 in Game 1 of the Western Conference Finals as the home team is going to take complete control.
