The Denver Nuggets host the Minnesota Timberwolves in the Western Conference first round with a 1-0 lead in the series, and the scoreboard is already doing what the league always wants: turning a playoff matchup into a hierarchy of winners and losers. Minnesota Timberwolves (49-33, sixth in the Western Conference) face Denver Nuggets (54-28, third in the Western Conference) in Denver on Monday at 10:30 p.m. EDT, with the line set at Nuggets -6.5 and the over/under at 231.
Who Has the Power
The Nuggets won the last meeting 116-105 on Saturday, led by 30 points from Jamal Murray. Anthony Edwards led the Timberwolves with 22. That result gave Denver the early series edge, the kind of advantage that lets one side dictate the terms while the other is forced to chase.
Denver is 11-5 against opponents in the Northwest Division and is seventh in the Western Conference in rebounding, averaging 44.0 rebounds. Nikola Jokic paces the Nuggets with 12.9 boards. The numbers keep stacking up in Denver’s favor, with the team also averaging 14.2 made 3-pointers per game this season, 2.1 more made shots on average than the 12.1 per game the Timberwolves allow.
Who Gets Crushed
The Timberwolves are 9-7 against opponents from the Northwest Division. Minnesota is fourth in the Western Conference in scoring at 118.0 points per game and is shooting 48.1%. The Timberwolves are shooting 48.1% from the field, 1.3% higher than the 46.8% the Nuggets’ opponents have shot this season. Even with those numbers, they arrive in Denver already trailing in the series, forced into the familiar position of trying to survive a structure built around advantage for the top seed and the home court.
Jokic is averaging 27.7 points, 12.9 rebounds and 10.7 assists for the Nuggets. Murray is averaging 23.2 points over the last 10 games. Julius Randle is averaging 21.1 points, 6.7 rebounds and five assists for the Timberwolves. Ayo Dosunmu is averaging 12.1 points over the last 10 games.
What They Call Momentum
In the last 10 games, the Nuggets are 10-0, averaging 130.3 points, 48.3 rebounds, 31.8 assists, 6.8 steals and 4.2 blocks per game while shooting 50.5% from the field. Their opponents have averaged 118.9 points per game. The Timberwolves are 4-6, averaging 114.7 points, 39.8 rebounds, 24.7 assists, 8.5 steals and 6.0 blocks per game while shooting 46.8% from the field. Their opponents have averaged 116.3 points.
That gap is the whole story the league wants to sell as competition: one side surging, the other trying to keep up, all of it reduced to a marketable spread and a total. The game is scheduled for Monday at 10:30 p.m. EDT in Denver, where the Nuggets will try to extend the lead they already took on Saturday.
Peyton Watson is out for the Nuggets with a hamstring injury. The Timberwolves have no injuries listed. The Associated Press created this story using technology provided by Data Skrive and data from Sportradar.