Filip Tomic
And just like that, we have the Western Conference Finals beginning as the Timberwolves and Thunder clash in Game 1 on Tuesday. OKC powered past the Nuggets in a Game 7 just 2 days ago, and now has to reset and prepare to take on a Minnesota team that has rolled through both the Lakers and Warriors. Tip-off is set for 8:30 pm ET on ESPN, and I’ve prepared a Timberwolves vs Thunder Same Game Parlay at +345 odds to spice things up. You can also lock in our NBA picks for this matchup and every game of the Conference Finals.
Timberwolves +7.5 (-110)
Naz Reid 2+ made threes (-132)
Shai Gilgeous-Alexander to score 30+ points (-162)
Timberwolves vs Thunder Same Game Parlay odds: +345
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Minnesota Timberwolves +7.5 over Oklahoma City Thunder (-110)
It has been a relatively smooth ride for the Timberwolves in the opening two rounds of the postseason, but now things get serious as they face the Thunder in the West Finals. Anthony Edwards and company have not played a competitive game since wrapping up their series against the Warriors, getting 5 full days of rest in between games which could be a factor coming into the series opener. As we all saw, OKC had to play all 7 games to dispose of Nikola Jokic and the Nuggets, who just ran out of gas in the end. Depth has never been a problem for OKC, but there could be lingering effects after playing such a huge game over the weekend as we go into the next series just 48 hours later.
The 4 regular-season meetings saw the teams split them, and interestingly the road team came out on top in the last 2 games. Minnesota was the underdog in all 4 of them, covering the spread 3 times. For Game 1, oddsmakers have opted for a 7.5-point spread which seems like a lot considering only one of the regular-season meetings saw a team win by more than 8 points. If we look at the last 8 meetings played in OKC, the T-Wolves have won 6 of those while also boasting a 12-5 SU record in the last 17 games head-to-head. This should be a close series and I’ll take my chances with Minnesota at least covering the spread in the opener.
Read our full Timberwolves vs Thunder prediction for Game 1 of the Western Conference Finals
Naz Reid 2+ made threes (-132)
Naz Reid’s points average is down slightly compared to the regular season, but his impact should not be underestimated in the success of the Timberwolves so far. The former Sixth Man of the Year is averaging 11.6 points per game in 10 games so far and his efficiency has been off the charts at 50% from downtown on 2.2 makes per game. Although he failed to clear this line in the last 2 games of the Warriors series, he’s 6-2 in the first 8 games of the postseason.
Catching the Thunder off guard in the series opener could be the key to winning this series, as there could be a bit of a hangover effect on their side after the Nuggets took them the distance. Reid averaged 22.5 points per game in 4 regular-season meetings against OKC, shooting just over 45% from the field. Entering this game, he’s currently on a streak of 3 consecutive meetings with at least 2 threes made, while in the last 9 games head-to-head he has failed to clear this line just once against the Thunder. Let’s stick with the reliable hand and take Reid to knock down a couple of triples tonight.
Find out our expert’s Timberwolves vs Thunder first basket best bet for Game 1 tonight at +550 odds!
Shai Gilgeous-Alexander to score 30+ points (-162)
After Shai Gilgeous-Alexander scored 35 points in Sunday’s 125-93 win in Game 7 over the Nuggets, the likely regular season MVP should continue his impressive postseason run in Game 1 of the Conference Finals. As the postseason has progressed, SGA has been able to get over some early struggles and is now in his standard 30+ points-per-game production mode. For the postseason, SGA is at 29 per game in 11 games so far, but he’s cleared this line in 3 straight against the Nuggets while shooting better than 50% in each of those games.
Gilgeous-Alexander dominated the Timberwolves during the 4 regular-season meetings, putting up 35 points per game on average while shooting 51.1% from the field and 55.6% from three. Those types of numbers are hard to overlook coming into this series and Minnesota seemingly doesn’t have an answer for him. Obviously, this being the postseason, we can expect adjustments as this series progresses, but for Game 1 I’m counting on SGA to deliver another solid performance as the Thunder play their first Conference Finals game in 9 years.
JutPicks’ best Timberwolves vs Thunder player prop bets for tonight, targeting Shai Gilgeous-Alexander and Mike Conley
