The Daily Sweat: Can the Nuggets clinch their first NBA title?
The Denver Nuggets are on the precipice of history.
It took nearly 50 years for the Nuggets to finally reach the NBA Finals, and they don’t want this opportunity to go to waste. The Nuggets hold a 3-1 series edge over the Miami Heat entering Monday night’s Game 5 in Denver.
The Nuggets seized control of the series by winning both Games 3 and 4 on the road in Miami after the Heat pulled off the upset in Denver in Game 2. Now the Nuggets have a chance to win their first NBA title on their home floor.
And after seeing the way they played in back-to-back double-digit victories in Miami, it’s hard to envision the Nuggets not wrapping things up on Monday night.
The Nuggets have been favored in all four games of this series. For Game 5, they are favored by 8.5 points at BetMGM.
Other than the 111-108 loss in Game 2, Denver’s average margin of victory in the Finals has been 13 points. The Nuggets have covered the spread in each of their wins in the series. Additionally, each of those Denver victories have gone under the total. The total for Game 5 is currently 209.5 — the lowest of the series.
Nikola Jokic, the two-time league MVP, has been leading the way, but his supporting cast stepped up in a big way in Game 4. Jokic posted 23 points and 12 rebounds, but the Nuggets were led in scoring by Aaron Gordon.
Gordon went for 27 points, the most he’s scored in a game since early February. In addition to the scoring outburst from Gordon, Bruce Brown added 21 off the bench. The big nights from Gordon and Brown offset the off shooting nights from Jokic and Jamal Murray, who went a combined 13-of-36 from the field.
The Nuggets also were able to limit Miami’s outside shooting. The Heat went just 8-of-25 from deep with Gabe Vincent and Max Strus — consistent double-figure scorers for Miami — to combine for a mere two points on 1-of-10 from the field and 0-of-7 from deep.
To close out the series and avoid going back to Miami, Denver cannot afford to let up.
8 games on MLB schedule
There’s a lighter schedule in baseball on Monday night with eight games to sort through.
Among the teams in action are the surprising Miami Marlins, who have won eight of their last nine with third baseman Luis Arraez leading the way. Before going 1-for-5 in Sunday’s win over the Chicago White Sox, Arraez was hitting .402 on the season. Now he’s down to .397, an average that leads the majors by 59 percentage points. Pretty good.
Anyway, the Marlins are beginning a three-game road series with the Seattle Mariners. The Mariners are just 2-9 in their last 11 outings but are -120 favorites Monday night at BetMGM. The Marlins are +100.
Elsewhere, the Cincinnati Reds are all of a sudden gaining some steam with an array of exciting rookies getting significant playing time. The main name to know in that group is Elly De La Cruz, the 6-foot-5 infielder with huge power and blazing speed. The Reds are 4-2 with De La Cruz in the lineup with series wins over the Dodgers and Cardinals. On Monday, the Reds start a three-game series with the Kansas City Royals. The Royals are -120 home favorites, the Reds are +100.
Another suddenly hot team is the Oakland Athletics. The A’s still have the worst record in the big leagues at 17-50, but they’re riding a five-game winning streak back home as they begin a four-game series with the Tampa Bay Rays, the team with the best record in the league (48-20). Predictably, the Rays are big favorites at -275. The A’s are +220.
Stanley Cup odds update
The Vegas Golden Knights can go from brand new franchise to Stanley Cup champions in just five seasons with just one more victory.
The Knights hold a 3-1 series advantage over the Florida Panthers with the series back in Las Vegas for Game 5 on Tuesday night. The Knights won a Game 4 thriller in Florida on Thursday, holding off a last-second barrage to win 3-2 and taking command of the series.
Headed into Game 5, Vegas is -1100 to win the series at BetMGM and -175 for Game 5 in particular. The Panthers have been underdogs throughout the postseason and are in that position yet again. For the series as a whole, the Panthers are +700 to win the next three to hoist the Cup. For Game 5, the Panthers have +145 odds at BetMGM.
