The Minnesota Timberwolves face the San Antonio Spurs in Game 1 of their Western Conference semifinal series on Monday night at Frost Bank Center. Anthony Edwards is expected to play despite a recent knee injury, according to ESPN. San Antonio enters as a heavy favorite.
The sixth-seeded Timberwolves advanced past the Denver Nuggets with a 110-98 win on Thursday, while the second-seeded Spurs defeated Portland 114-95 on Tuesday. Game 1 tips off at 9:30 p.m. ET in San Antonio, where the Spurs posted a 34-9 home record during the regular season. Minnesota went 24-20 on the road, including postseason play, after finishing 49-33 overall and third in the Northwest Division. The Spurs topped the Southwest Division at 62-20 and boasted the league's third-best scoring offense at 119.8 points per game on average, with the Timberwolves seventh at 118 points. San Antonio is a 9.5-point favorite per FanDuel Sportsbook, with an over/under of 219.5 points and a money line of Spurs -408, Timberwolves +319. Ayo Dosunmu is ruled out with a calf injury, while Edwards remains questionable on the latest report. Edwards suffered a hyperextended knee and bone bruise on April 25 in Game 4 against Denver and was initially expected to miss several weeks. After around-the-clock treatment, he was a significant participant at shootaround Monday morning. ESPN reports he is expected to suit up. In a YouTube video Sunday, Edwards declared, “It's the playoffs. I'll go out (there) on one leg if I have to.” SportsLine's model, which simulates games 10,000 times, projects an over on the total, with Victor Wembanyama leading the Spurs at 25.3 points and Julius Randle topping Minnesota at 21.9 points in forecasts.
