The Minnesota Timberwolves opened a highly anticipated second-round series with a 106-99 victory over the Denver Nuggets. Stephen A. Smith thinks they’ll continue their red-hot postseason and eliminate the defending champions.
On Monday’s First Take, Smith predicted the Timberwolves will best the Nuggets. While he wasn’t ready to put them in their first-ever NBA Finals, the ESPN personality claimed there’s a “pretty good chance” the Wolves would beat the Oklahoma City Thunder or Dallas Mavericks.
“Denver is in some trouble,” Smith declared. “Make no mistake about it. I think Minnesota is going to win this series.”
Unsurprisingly, Smith cited Anthony Edwards as a big reason why he believes Minnesota should be favored over Denver. The burgeoning superstar is averaging 33.5 points in six playoff games against the Nuggets when including last year’s encounter.
Smith also noted that Edwards leads the NBA in points, field-goal percentage, and three-point percentage during the fourth quarter this postseason while making all 14 of his free throws.
“This is some unreal stuff that we’re looking at,” Smith said of Edwards. “A 22-year-old with that athleticism. The cross-over dribbling, the ball-handling ability, the shot-making ability. The fierceness. The ferocity. All of that.”
Smith also claimed that Nikola Jokic looked like he was “about to collapse” from exhaustion during Game 1. Meanwhile, Minnesota has more size to combat the MVP big man.
Jamal Murray isn’t 100 percent healthy, and Smith feels the Nuggets are feeling Bruce Brown’s absence while Edwards is “abusing” anyone else trying to guard him.
The oddsmakers appear to agree with Smith. Although Denver is favored to win Game 2 at home, Minnesota is a -125 favorite to take the series on DraftKings Sportsbook.
Game 2 starts Monday at 10 p.m. ET on TNT.