These 8 Underrated Players Hold the Power to Shake Up the NBA Playoffs from Day One
Grant may be the key to mitigating Wembanyama’s defensive impact. With the ball in Deni Avdija’s hands and Grant, Jrue Holiday, Toumani Camara and Shaedan Sharpe all on the floor (they’re +11 in 45 minutes shared together), the Trail Blazers could theoretically have enough spacing to keep the Spurs’ 7-3 star out of the paint, and, in turn, steal the series.
No. 3 Denver Nuggets (54-28) vs. No. 6 Minnesota Timberwolves (49-33)
X-Factor: Julius Randle, Timberwolves
The last time these two teams met in the playoffs (2024 Western Conference semifinals), the Timberwolves beat the Nuggets in a thrilling seven-game series. While he isn’t known for his defense, then-Wolves center Karl-Anthony Towns made life difficult on Nuggets star Nikola Jokic, which let Rudy Gobert lurk around the paint as a huge factor in the series’ outcome.



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