Suns: Series betting still favors Denver after Game 4 loss
Welcome to the Winner’s Circle, a weekly column by Bet For The Win senior writer Prince J. Grimes.
Kevin Durant and Devin Booker combined for 72 points in Sunday night’s game against the Denver Nuggets to tie their second-round playoff series at 2-2.
It was just the type of performance Suns bettors may have expected from the two stars going into the series and one of the reasons they may have picked Phoenix to advance.
However, for bettors riding the Nuggets in this series, it should be the exact reason not to panic.
Although the Nuggets have dropped two straight, they’ve looked like the better team through four games, with a heavy emphasis on team. And the series odds reflect that, as they still favor Denver to advance at -160 odds.
In order for the Suns to win Game 3, Durant and Booker had to combine for 86 points in 85 minutes. Both stars are averaging nearly 42 minutes per game. They’re the only players averaging more than 40 in the series.
That’s a large load for two players to carry, and it’s hard to think that won’t eventually take a toll.
Denver’s best player on the other hand is averaging a series-high 36.5 points in fewer minutes, and the team actually lost in his series-best 53-point explosion Sunday.
In other words, the Nuggets are better when Nikola Jokic doesn’t have to do as much scoring. They have four players averaging at least 12 points, compared to just the two for Phoenix. And while the Suns have to be happy that Landry Shamet showed up for 19 points in Game 4, he was just the second player outside of Durant and Booker to give them double-digit scoring in the last three games.
That’s important because Phoenix has demonstrated itself incapable of slowing Denver’s offense. In order to win, the Suns have to outscore the Nuggets, and that becomes a lot harder when they can only rely on two players.
As Phoenix heads back to Denver as a five-point underdog for Game 5 Tuesday, I find myself a lot more concerned for its chances to prevail than I did entering the series. Nuggets bettors don’t need to worry just yet.
