The battle for seeding in the NBA Western Conference is nearing its end. The Minnesota Timberwolves are currently in the number 8 seed as they come to Denver on Tuesday night. This game headlines a nationally televised doubleheader as the 3rd seed Nuggets try and hold off a young and hungry opponent after resting Nikola Jokic yesterday due to a hand injury. Minnesota, led by star Anthony Edwards, looks to improve its postseason position and avoid the NBA play-in tournament.
| Team | Spread | Total Points O/U | Money Line |
| Timberwolves | +3.5 | O 231.5 | +130 |
| Nuggets | -3.5 | U 231.5 | -154 |
Timberwolves Fight to Improve Postseason Seeding
The Timberwolves have been taking on all challenges and storming through the month of March. At least, the majority of the month at least. After snapping an 8-game win streak with an overtime loss to Indiana on March 17, Minnesota has seemed to struggle to get back on rhythm. Anthony Edwards’s scoring has been down in the last 5 games, and he has failed to crack the 30-point mark in those games.
Nikola Jokic had 27 points and 14 rebounds before sitting the fourth quarter when the Denver Nuggets beat the Utah Jazz 129-93 on Friday night to strengthen their positioning for the No. 3 seed in the Western Conference. The Nuggets find themselves in the middle game of a 5-game home stretch with a back to back tomorrow night against the San Antonio Spurs.
Edwards is in a Scoring Slump
The Timberwolves are currently fighting to climb out of the play in the tournament. They won a wild contest in Detroit on Sunday night. A brawl broke out on the court during the game, which led to 5 players and 2 coaches being ejected. No announcement of suspension for any of these players has been made so far leading up to this game. Big man Naz Reid and guard Donte DiVencenzo were ejected for the Timberwolves, as well as assistant coach Pablo Prigioni.
Anthony Edwards had 25 points in the game in Detroit on 9-19 shooting and 36 minutes. This was his highest point total in 5 games. Julius Randle has led the Timberwolves in points in their last 3 wins. The Nuggets are a big team who are able to defend at all levels. While they are coming into this game down 0-3 in the season series, I like the odds of them avoiding a sweep at -3.5 point underdogs. Nikola Jokic is a 3x MVP and NBA Champion.
Nobody has ever questioned his conditioning or mental preparation for big late-season games. The Nuggets’ big man has averaged 29.3 points this season. I would trust the Denver team to cover the 3.5-point spread in this game and avoid the season series sweep.
