McDaniels provided 14 points (6-10 FG, 1-3 3Pt, 1-1 FT), six rebounds, three assists and three blocks across 31 minutes during Sunday's 117-94 victory over the Raptors.
Ball chipped in 15 points (5-8 FG, 4-5 3Pt, 1-2 FT), one rebound, eight assists and two steals across 17 minutes during Sunday's 117-94 victory over Toronto.
Shannon closed with 15 points (5-6 FG, 3-3 3Pt, 2-3 FT), four rebounds, three assists and one steal in 23 minutes during Sunday's 117-94 victory over the Raptors.
Diallo (wrist) is doubtful for Monday's game against the Warriors.
Johnson (ankle) is doubtful to play Monday against the Warriors.
Jones (hamstring) is out for Monday's matchup with the Warriors.
Whitmore provided four points (2-5 FG, 0-2 3Pt), two rebounds and one steal over 11 minutes during Saturday's 141-135 overtime win over New Orleans.
Jokic closed Saturday's 141-135 overtime victory over New Orleans with 35 points (12-23 FG, 3-10 3Pt, 8-8 FT), 15 rebounds, 10 assists, three blocks and two steals over 44 minutes.
Brazile notched 17 points (6-11 FG, 3-7 3Pt, 2-4 FT), nine rebounds, two blocks and one steal over 28 minutes during Saturday's 141-135 overtime win over the Pelicans.
Murray accumulated 42 points (12-25 FG, 8-16 3Pt, 10-13 FT), three rebounds, six assists, one block and one steal across 43 minutes during Saturday's 141-135 overtime win over the Pelicans.
FanDuel. We’re not getting quite as good odds as we did in Game 2, but this line is still too low for Anthony Edwards, who continue to prove he is a willing rebounder in the playoffs. Having averaged 7+ boards in each of the last two postseasons, Edwards has 19 total rebounds in the first two games, on 15 potentials in each contest. Look for the Ant Man to continue to clean the glass.
The Nuggets lead the league in Adjusted Offensive Efficiency and True Shooting Percentage, establishing a championship-caliber offense. While home-court advantage is often overstated, Minnesota’s negative Home Advantage Rating (-1.5) essentially neutralizes any statistical edge at Target Center. More significantly, Anthony Edwards (questionable) continues to struggle with a lingering knee injury, limiting Minnesota’s main scoring option. He logged heavy minutes in both road games and remains a true game-time decision tonight. Denver has displayed resilience after losses (21-7 record), and their league-leading 11.5% Turnover Percentage minimizes mistakes. I like the Nuggets in this spot.
Cameron Johnson scored 12 points in Game 1 and 13 points in Game 2. That’s despite him shooting a combined 3-for-13 from behind the arc. He’s normally a good three-point shooter, making 43.0% of his attempts from deep this season. Over his final 15 games of the regular season, he shot 48.2% from three and averaged 15.2 points per game. Expect him to play around 30 minutes as the Nuggets try to regain homecourt advantage, making this over the way to go.
The Timberwolves deserved to win Game 2 because they won all the statistical battles, including 48% from the field, 41% from 3-point range, and 49 rebounds. The only thing Minnesota did worse than Denver was commit 12 turnovers to Denver's 9. But I immediately bet the Nuggets following the Game 2 loss. Nikola Jokic is a big man and takes a lot of abuse that isn't called a foul. The Timberwolves got away with prodding and poking non-fouls, and then said they found a secret way to slow Jokic down. You got all these relaxed rules in the NBA, yet Jokic gets the 1990 Pistons-like thuggery treatment. I think the referees will wake up to what's going on in Game 3. Nuggets to win.
