(Photo by Kevin C. Cox/Getty Images)
The Denver Nuggets, who won the NBA championship last year, are out of the playoffs after being eliminated in the second round by the Minnesota Timberwolves.
On Wednesday, the Timberwolves will begin the Western Conference Finals against the Dallas Mavericks, and it is a matchup very few would’ve predicted when the season started.
Former Nuggets head coach George Karl said on his Twitter account that he is picking Minnesota to win the series in six games.
Wolves in 6!
— George Karl (@CoachKarl22) May 22, 2024
Many expected Denver to repeat as world champs this season, and many expected them to get past Minnesota, one way or another, when the second round of the playoffs began.
But Minnesota shocked Nikola Jokic and crew by taking Game 1, 106-99, and they then routed Denver by 26 points in Game 2.
Denver won the next three games, making it seem as if they got their mojo back, but the Timberwolves responded with a 115-70 blowout win in Game 6.
Then, after trailing by as many as 20 points in the third quarter of Game 7, the Timberwolves thoroughly dominated the rest of the contest to punch their ticket to the West Finals.
Dallas will present them with a different kind of challenge, as Dallas’ offensive punch comes from their star-studded backcourt of Kyrie Irving and Luka Doncic and not from a dominant big man like Jokic.
Defense has gotten Minnesota to this point, but the Mavs have also made strides on that end of the floor recently.
This series could come down to who ends up being more clutch — Irving and Doncic, or the Timberwolves’ Anthony Edwards, who seems to be coming of age this spring.
The post George Karl Reveals His Prediction For Timberwolves, Mavericks Series appeared first on The Cold Wire.