The 2024 NBA Playoffs will tip off on Saturday for what should be a fascinating first-round matchup in the Eastern Conference as the No. 3 Minnesota Timberwolves will battle the No. 6 Phoenix Suns in a best-of-seven series.
This has a chance to be one of the more interesting series of the first round as the lower-seed team actually enters as the favorite. Minnesota put forth its best regular season in two decades as the trio of Anthony Edwards, Karl-Anthony Towns, and Rudy Gobert were dominant while backup center Naz Reid emerged as a Sixth Man of the Year contender. Meanwhile, Phoenix avoided the play-in tournament and earned the six-seed on the final day of the regular season by beating this same Minnesota team. Suns fans had to wait until the holidays to finally see the trio of Kevin Durant, Devin Booker, and Bradley Beal on the floor at the same time due to injuries and they were able to get things rolling after New Year’s.
Here’s a look at some of our favorite series props for this matchup, with odds courtesy of DraftKings Sportsbook.
Timberwolves vs. Suns series props
Timberwolves win series (+110)
Phoenix ended up sweeping the season series against Minnesota and did so handily with every game being decided by double digits. Both teams have strong Big 3s and in a best-of-seven series, I can see Minnesota’s role players making a larger impact than Phoenix’s. There’s also the element of the Wolves suffering back-to-back first-round exits the previous two years, so there will be extra motivation to break through and not let a successful regular season go to waste.
Exact games for the series: 6 (+180)
This should be a long series as I can imagine both teams stealing a game on each other’s home floor. Game 5 in Minnesota should be the turning point and with the Wolves posting a nice 30-11 record on their home floor this year, taking this contest to go up 3-2 should springboard them toward winning this series.
Exact series outcome (Winner of each game): MIN G1/PHO G2/PHO G3/MIN G4/MIN G5/MIN G6 (+6000)
As mentioned before, both teams are capable of stealing a game on the other’s home floor. They split their first two games before Phoenix takes Game 3 to jump out to a 2-1 lead. From there, it’s all Minnesota as the Suns get worn down. After tying the series in Game 4, they take Game 5 as the Suns Big 3 start to get worn down. That then leads to Minnesota closing it out back in the desert by double digits, a reverse of how all of the regular season games between these two teams have gone.