NBA fans will have quite the treat on Sunday with two Game 7s. The New York Knicks will host the Indiana Pacers in the afternoon and then the Denver Nuggets host the Minnesota Timberwolves in primetime.
These two series have been very different. The home team has won every game in the New York-Indiana series, which makes it feel like the Knicks should have a significant edge on Sunday. The home team has won just twice in the Denver-Minnesota series, although the home team won the last two games.
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The home team is favored in both Game 7s, but neither is a significant favorite. Will there be an upset in one or both of these games?
Here’s a look at the storylines, odds and staff picks for Sunday’s two Game 7s.
All odds from BetMGM. Find the best deals on StubHub for tickets.
No. 6 Indiana Pacers at No. 2 New York Knicks
How to watch: 3:30 p.m. ET on ABC
Series tied 3-3
For all the talk of momentum swings or one team figuring out another, this series has purely been about home court so far. The Knicks won a pair of close games at home to start the series, but then Indiana evened things up at home, including a total blowout in Game 4.
Did that mean Indiana was coming back and the Knicks’ injuries were finally taking their toll? Not because New York won Game 5 by 30 at home.
Did that mean Indiana was cooked and the Knicks were going to finish off the series? No. Indiana won Game 6 by 13 at home and led by double digits the entire fourth quarter.
Now we head to Game 7 where the Knicks are favored by a few points and the question marks surrounding this team this postseason are still there. New York is without Julius Randle (for the entire postseason), Bojan Bogdanović (who has been out since Game 4 of the first round), Mitchell Robinson (who last played in Game 1 of this series) and OG Anunoby (who last played in Game 2 of this series). Josh Hart is the newest addition to the injury list after leaving Game 6 with “abdominal soreness.”
A short bench isn’t really a problem for coach Tom Thibodeau, who doesn’t play his bench much as it is, but at some point the missing talent should catch up to New York, at least in theory. As New York continues to survive with more and more players going down, it almost feels like this series is more about Indiana than New York. Jalen Brunson has been outstanding this postseason and as long as he is healthy, the Knicks seem to be able to absorb these injuries. Will it be one too many or another miraculous Knicks win led by Brunson?
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Indiana, meanwhile, is 1-5 on the road this postseason. The Pacers have to figure out how to win on the road, and they must figure it out in a Game 7 in front of a Madison Square Garden crowd that will be ready to rock.
Expert picks for Pacers at Knicks
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No. 3 Minnesota Timberwolves at No. 2 Denver Nuggets
How to watch: 8 p.m. ET on TNT
Series tied 3-3
Just as it looked like the Nuggets had figured out how to beat Minnesota, the Timberwolves delivered the biggest blowout of the playoffs. Minnesota won Game 6 by 45 points, although a chunk of that margin of victory came after the Nuggets pulled their starters for the final 10 minutes.
For a series that is going seven games, it has featured a lot of blowouts. In addition to Thursday’s romp, the Timberwolves won Game 2 by 26. Denver won Game 3 by 27 and Game 5 by 15. That probably makes this game a bit more unpredictable.
Minnesota has won two of the three games in Denver, which should help with any fear factor. However, it is the first Game 7 of Anthony Edwards’ career. The same goes for Karl-Anthony Towns. Rudy Gobert and Mike Conley Jr., who came back from injury in Game 6, played together for Utah in a Game 7 in 2020 against the Nuggets, but that was in an empty arena in the bubble. The atmosphere will be different on Sunday to say the least.
The Nuggets won that Game 7 in 2020, and another in the next round. Denver also played two Game 7s in 2019, beating the Spurs in the first round and losing to Portland in the second round. Nikola Jokić has averaged 24 points per game in four career Game 7s. Jamal Murray is a tick higher at 24.3 points per game in Game 7s, including a 40-point effort against the Clippers in the second round in the bubble.
Minnesota’s last Game 7 was in 2004, when MVP Kevin Garnett guided the Timberwolves to the conference finals for the first and only time. Garnett had 32 points, 21 rebounds, five blocks and four steals in one of the most impactful performances in Timberwolves history. Edwards may need to do something like that for Minnesota to get the win in Denver.
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Expert picks for Timberwolves at Nuggets
Picks standings
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Knicks lose Josh Hart in Game 6 loss: ‘I guess you can just add it to the list’
How a different Karl-Anthony Towns made all the difference for Timberwolves in Game 6
Why the Timberwolves’ pregame film session, music and all, was the Nuggets’ downfall in Game 6
Nuggets have no answers for Timberwolves in historic Game 6 loss: ‘They destroyed us’
(Photo of Jalen Brunson: Dylan Buell / Getty Images)
