NBA Playoffs Game 4: Best Bets and Player Props for Thunder vs. Timberwolves

Saturday’s 143-101 blowout against the Minnesota Timberwolves had to be hard to watch for fans of the Oklahoma City Thunder — or anyone who took the OVER on an OKC player prop. But that doesn’t mean we’re leaving them off our list of best NBA playoff bets for Monday, May 26.

Can Minnesota do it again? Can the Timberwolves wallop the Thunder and make this series interesting? We’ll go over the answer to that question and more in our list of today’s best NBA playoff bets (odds via FanDuel unless otherwise stated).

Oklahoma City Thunder (-3) vs. Minnesota Timberwolves (+128), o/u 218.5

This is when betting gets tricky because we just don’t know how much weight to give Game 3. Was it a one-off performance we’ll never see again? Or have the real Timberwolves stood up, and we now have a series on our hands?

Minnesota was a solid home team (25-16), so they deserve some credit for the whipping they put on OKC. But the Thunder were 32-8 on the road this season — they’re not afraid to play away from home.

Shai Gilgeous-Alexander will not get held to 14 points again and will not attempt just 13 shots (he took 27 and 21 in Games 1 and 2). This game will likely be close, but OKC will be ready this time around.

Pick: Oklahoma City -3

Oklahoma City Thunder vs. Minnesota Timberwolves: Player Props, Game 4

Anthony Edwards, OVER 8.5 rebounds at +118

Edwards only averaged 5.7 per game during the regular season, but he’s been going above and beyond on the boards during the playoffs. He averaged 8.4 per game in the first round, 7.6 in the conference semifinals, and he’s had nine in each game of the conference finals.

OKC is a solid rebounding team, but Edwards has proven he can pull down 9+ against the Thunder — he’s done it in all three games, whether things are going right or wrong for the Timberwolves.

Anthony Edwards, OVER 13.5 rebounds and assists at -114

I know what you’re thinking: “Why not go with his point total?” The answer is simple — I don’t trust it. Yes, Edwards has had a pair of 30+ point nights in a row (his point total is set at 27.8), but right before them, he had 18- and 22-point nights.

So, I don’t feel like I can trust his point production. However, he’s recorded 13.5+ rebounds and assists in his last two games (nine rebounds, six assists in Games 2 and 3 of this series) and in three of his last four. He’ll do it again tonight.

Isaiah Hartenstein, UNDER 18.5 Pts + Reb + Ast at -106

If you look at his regular-season averages (11.2 points, 10.7 rebounds, 3.8 assists in 27.9 minutes), he could easily go over this total. But he just hasn’t been playing much of a role lately, starting with the last couple of games vs. Denver.

So far against Minnesota, he’s averaging 8.0 points, 6.3 rebounds, and 0.7 assists in 22 minutes per game. There’s no reason to think his role will increase in this game.