
The Minnesota Timberwolves are on the brink of getting swept and going home after dropping three straight games to the Dallas Mavericks. The Timberwolves will be looking to finally stop the bleeding to turn this series around and do the unthinkable by winning four straight games when they head to Dallas for Game 4 of this do-or-die matchup.
With that said, we take a look at this Western Conference Finals Game 4 matchup to make a Timberwolves-Pacers prediction and pick.
(Photo by Matthew Stockman/Getty Images)
Minnesota Timberwolves (64-32) were looking like the team to beat after downing the reigning and defending NBA Champions Denver Nuggets in 7 games but they haven't had nearly the same success against the Dallas Mavericks. They are now down 3-0 in the series and are looking like they will be suffering the same fate as the Indiana Pacers getting swept out of the Conference Finals.
Unlike the Pacers, the Timberwolves will come into this do-or-die situation as healthy as can be with all of their players ready to battle it out and take this series back home to Minnesota as they attempt to do the impossible which is to win four straight games en route to an NBA Finals appearance.
They will certainly need their starting five to step up in the biggest game of their careers. In Game 3, Anthony Edwards put the team on his back with his 26 points but he had little help from the rest of his supporting cast. As for Karl-Anthony Towns and Rudy Gobert, they only combined for a whopping 23 points, which will not cut it if they want to avoid elimination.
This team still has a very deep cast of players like the 6th man of the year Naz Reid, Mike Conley, and Jaden McDaniels but they haven't played as a cohesive unit this series.
However, this is team the Minnesota Timberwolves team that had by far the best defense in the NBA this season with one of the best pure scorers in the league.
They need to get back to their roots playing stifling defense and dominating inside the paint. If Anthony Edwards can do his magic and put this team on his back per usual and finally get the support he needs they can overcome the adversity to avoid elimination and bring this series back to Minnesota for Game 5.
Dallas Mavericks (61-36) are looking to make yet another NBA Finals and they are just one win away from getting it done. After two close games to start the series, Luka Doncic, Kyrie Irving, and this Mavericks team took it to the Minnesota Timberwolves in Game 3 winning decisively 116-107.
In that game, Doncic and Irving combined for 66 points and were unstoppable on the court in Game 3. The Mavericks were able to sink 14 of 28 3-pointers as well with 8 of those coming from Doncic and Irving.
While P.J. Washington and Derrick Jones Jr. were the only ones to score in the double digits it was an all-around effort from this Mavericks supporting cast on both ends of the court to get the job done in Game 3.
This is the kind of effort they will need if they want to close out the series with a sweep come Game 4.
The Timberwolves were the ones that came into this series pegged as the best defensive team in the NBA but it's been the Mavericks who have been the ones to play stifling defense in this series. They have held the trio of Anthony Edwards, Karl-Anthony Towns, and Rudy Gobert in check for the majority of this series as they just combined for 49 points with 26 of those points coming from Edwards.
Also in Game 3, they held the Timberwolves to just 30% from 3-point range (9-30) and just 51% from the floor. The Mavericks limited second-chance opportunities with just 30% of the Timberwolves' rebounds coming on the offensive glass. This Mavericks team has shown they have the means to close out this series and they have the opportunity to do just that in Game 4 tonight.
The Dallas Mavericks come into this road matchup in Game 4 with a ton of momentum after a dominant victory at home taking a commanding 3-0 series lead and putting the Timberwolves on the brink of elimination.
However, the Minnesota Timberwolves will not go down without a fight and this is a do-or-die situation the Timberwolves have shown this playoffs and I expect this game to come down to the wire.
While they may not hold off the Mavericks they certainly can keep this game within reach and cover the spread.
Ultimately, expect the Mavericks to come out flat and the Timberwolves to keep this game within reach to the very end and cover the spread with the chance of a potential upset.
FINAL TIMBERWOLVES-MAVERICKS PICK & PREDICTION: MINNESOTA TIMBERWOLVES +2 (-112)
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