The Dallas Mavericks need just a win in Game 3 to virtually seal the deal in this playoff series against the Minnesota Timberwolves. Will the Mavs get it done again in their first home game of this series? Or, will the Timberwolves fight back and cut their series deficit in half?

Catch this game live on Monday, May 27, 2024 at 8:00 AM, Manila time

Away: Minnesota Timberwolves (0-2)

Projected Starting Five:

  • Mike Conley
  • Anthony Edwards
  • Jaden McDaniels
  • Karl-Anthony Towns
  • Rudy Gobert

Karl-Anthony Towns perhaps said it best: “We’re just beating ourselves a lot of the times, making simple, mental errors,” the Timberwolves big man said after Minnesota’s 109-108  loss in Game 2 at home. Towns is a culprit himself behind the struggles of Minnesota. In Game 2, KAT went just 4//16 from the field and 1/5 from deep for 15 points. 

So far in the series, Towns is averaging only 15.5 points on 18.0 field goal attempts per game. Together with Anthony Edwards, Towns will have to wake up in this series before it’s too late for the Timberwolves. That means the two should break out of their slump in Game 3 because that’s virtually a must-win game for Minnesota, which has gone 7-3 against the spread in its last 10 games away from the Twin Cities. Edwards is also having an inefficient series, as he’s averaged just 20 points on 16.5 attempts from the floor versus the Mavs.

Home: Dallas Mavericks (2-0)

Projected Starting Five:

  • Luka Doncic
  • Kyrie Irving
  • Derrick Jones Jr.
  • P.J. Washington
  • Daniel Gafford

Rudy Gobert has four NBA Defensive Player of the Year awards but that did not matter to Luka Doncic, who drained the game-winning 3-pointer in Game 2 for Dallas. Doncic fired 32 points on 10/23 shooting from the field (5/11 on threes) and 7/7 from the foul line to lead the Mavs to another win over the perplexed Timberwolves.

 It was basically all Luka in Game 2, as he also had 13 assists. Daniel Gafford and Dereck Lively II scored 30 points together in part because Doncic kept finding them. The experience advantage of the Mavs over the Timberwolves is already showing in the series, but there’s no reason for Dallas to rest on its laurels. One thing the Mavs would love to see continue is its apparent effectiveness on defense. They have limited the Timberwolves to just 42.0 percent shooting from the field.

The Mavericks are 6-4 against the spread in their last 10 home games.

Picks

Spread: Minnesota Timberwolves (+2.5)

Over/Under: Over  (207.5)