Timberwolves at Thunder Game 1 picks, odds, how to watch: Anthony Edwards vs. SGA in Western Conference finals
The final four teams left in this year's NBA Playoffs have a combined two championships, and those were from the early 1970s. These fans have been patiently waiting for a conference finals to get excited for.
Starting Tuesday night, top-seeded Oklahoma City takes on Minnesota for the right to rep the Western Conference in the NBA Finals. Anthony Edwards, Julius Randle and the Timberwolves are vying to make a first Finals appearance in the franchise's 36-year history. Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, Chet Holmgren and the Thunder come in off a 68-win regular season and a dramatic seven-game second round. It's an awesome (if slightly unexpected) matchup between two small-market squads, both buoyed by aggressive front offices and cohesive roster-building philosophies.
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This game will also be streamed on ESPN+.
Series odds: Thunder -350, Timberwolves +280
The Thunder franchise technically claimed a league title in 1979 as the Seattle SuperSonics. Anyone familiar with the Sonics' torturous relocation saga will bristle at the idea of a shared history, though. As it stands, this blue-and-orange outfit has yet to hoist the Larry O'Brien Trophy, even when it had Kevin Durant, Russell Westbrook and James Harden on the court together. No. 1 seed Oklahoma City is the favorite to advance, but the competition is both formidable and feeling itself.
With Chris Finch pacing the sideline, Minnesota has dropped just two total games in its first two series. It toppled the Lakers and then Warriors with successive 4-1 series wins.
Edwards has been a high-usage bucket per usual in the playoffs (26.5 points per game, 44.5 percent from the field and 38.5 percent from 3). The supporting scorers have boosted him with clutch efficiency. Jaden McDaniels looks nothing short of stellar on both ends of the floor. Naz Reid sources perpetual heat checks off the bench.
Most saliently, Randle is playing with a relaxed swagger that we've never seen from his checkered postseason tenure. In two playoff runs with New York, Randle stumbled to unsightly shooting splits of 34.4/28.3/75.6. Through 10 games this postseason: 50.9/34.5/88.9 (not gross at all!), with an affirming assist-turnover ratio and a Kevin Garnett-esque triple-double in last round's Game 3.
Even better, the defense has been inspired, disciplined and unafraid of the playoff staging. Minnesota is allowing just 101 points per game while forcing an average of 16 turnovers. Among regulars, Rudy Gobert has the best offensive and defensive ratings on the team. Last time out, Minnesota shuffled through Golden State's screen-heavy action and applied searing on-ball pressure along the perimeter. Randle's been better in coverages, Edwards looks invigorated in man-to-man and the whole group has held opponents to 25 percent shooting in clutch minutes.
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The only remaining defense with better marks than Minnesota is Oklahoma City. The Thunder lead the playoffs in defensive rating and points off turnovers. The usual languid, funky efficiency of Nikola Jokić was disrupted by the Thunder's two-big lineup with Chet Holmgren and Isaiah Hartenstein. They were able to stunt Jokić without selling out on other Nuggets — Mark Daigneault's defense yielded a series of recurring nightmares for Michael Porter Jr. and Christian Braun.
OKC's offense was clunkier than expected against Denver. At least Jalen Williams got right in Game 7 (24 points with seven assists to one giveaway). Gilgeous-Alexander was MVP-caliber in Sunday's closeout, too, finishing at 12-for-19 with 35 points, three steals and no turnovers.
At large, though, something about the offense feels a bit off. Through 11 playoff games, the Thunder's top three 3-point shooters by volume (Williams, Gilgeous-Alexander and Lu Dort) are each below 30 percent. Alex Caruso and Isaiah Joe have been locked in from deep, but conference finals matchups are seldom determined by second-unit guards. To free up cleaner looks from 3, Gilgeous-Alexander will hope to continue living at the free-throw line, while the Holmgren-Hartenstein frontcourt will try to avoid foul trouble.
One time for OKC's playoff crowds, which have been wearing the arena-issued playoff T-shirts at a near-100 percent clip. The Thunder are favored at home, which makes sense for Game 1, but underestimate Edwards and his howling Wolves at your own peril.
Starting five of players to wear both jerseys
1995 — Rockets 115, Suns 114: In a second-round Game 7's waning moments, Mario Elie buried a 3 and eliminated Phoenix with his 'kiss of death.' Tom Friend in the New York Times:
'Elie, who honed his shot at a park on the corner of 99th and Amsterdam in New York, stole the series by draining a 3-point corner shot with 7.1 seconds remaining.
'I told him he's a wicked man,' Houston center Hakeem Olajuwon said of Elie.'
Betting/odds, ticketing and streaming links in this article are provided by partners of The Athletic. Restrictions may apply. The Athletic maintains full editorial independence. Partners have no control over or input into the reporting or editing process and do not review stories before publication.
(Photo of Anthony Edwards: Ellen Schmidt / Getty Images)
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