Suns vs. Timberwolves prediction and odds for Game 1 of Western Conference Playoffs
By Reed Wallach
The Suns and Timberwolves start their first round matchup on Saturday afternoon in Minnesota with Phoenix looking to keep its trend of dominating the Timberwolves en route to another second round appearance.
Phoenix won all three of the regular season meetings, can the team go into Minnesota and grab another win? Instead of playing a side, I’m eyeing a total in Saturday’s series opener as the Suns look to continue to exploit the matchup advantages against the T’Wolves.
Here’s our full Game 1 betting preview!
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Suns vs. Timberwolves Odds, Spread and Total
Suns vs. Timberwolves How to Watch
- Date: Saturday, April 20th
- Game Time: 3:30 PM EST
- Venue: Target Center
- How to Watch (TV): ESPN
Suns vs. Timberwolves Injury Reports
Suns Injury Report
- Eric Gordon - migraine - probable
Timberwolves Injury Report
- Jaylen Clark - Achilles - OUT
Suns vs. Timberwolves key players to watch
Phoenix Suns
Kevin Durant: Durant cooked the T’Wolves in the three victories for the Suns this season, averaging nearly 23 points with five rebounds and four assists while shooting 60% from the field and 44% from beyond the arc. Phoenix’s jump shooting-centric offense has given Minnesota fits all season and Durant has been an impossible task.
Minnesota Timberwolves
Anthony Edwards: Minnesota has the best defense in the NBA this season, but the team is going to need to have Edwards raise his level as a scorer to offset the potent Suns offense. Edwards has struggled against the Suns this season, averaging only 14 points with six rebounds and about four assists while shooting 31% from the field and 27% from beyond the arc. Edwards must be better for Minnesota to win on Saturday and compete in this series.
Suns vs. Timberwolves Prediction and Pick
Minnesota will look to bank on Phoenix’s jump shooting to cool off in this series while the team grinds out possessions on the other side, potentially dominating the free throw count.
Phoenix’s ability to attack Rudy Gobert in the pick-and-roll, and also pick on Karl-Anthony Towns’ mobility – or lack thereof – on the perimeter, generated a ton of quality looks for the team, and the team will test KAT’s surgically repaired knee as well.
While two of these games were blowout Suns wins that flew over the total, I believe this game will have limited possessions and be more of a halfcourt battle.
The second meeting between the teams, a 97-87 win in Phoenix in early April stands out as a potential template for how this game will go. The Suns were able to generate fine shots, shooting 35% from three got to the free throw line 29 times and even played at an above-average pace (101 possessions) but each team forced sub-50% effective field goal shooting.
I think the game will slow down in the postseason, and each team looks to win in the half court with late shot clock making. In Game 1, I’ll side with each defense winning out before the teams adjust later on in the series.
Game odds refresh periodically and are subject to change.