Blazers Now Listed as -150 Favorites to Advance to WCF After Winning Game 2 in Denver
- The Trail Blazers and Nuggets are tied up at one game apiece in their Western Conference semifinal series
- The Blazers held the Nuggets to 35 points in the first half of Game 2
- Portland heads home for Games 3 and 4, where they held a 32-9 record during the regular season
The tables have turned after the Portland Trail Blazers evened the series by defeating the Denver Nuggets in Game 2, 97-90.
Trail Blazers vs Nuggets NBA Playoff Series Odds
| Team | Trail Blazers vs Nuggets Series Odds |
|---|---|
| Portland Trail Blazers | -150 |
| Denver Nuggets | +130 |
Odds taken 05/02/19
Prior to the game, the Nuggets’ odds of heading to the Western Conference Finals were set at -240. Now, going into Game 3, the Blazers’ odds of winning the series are set at -150. That’s a big change from their previous odds of +200.
Home Court Advantage
Not only is stealing a game in Denver going to give Portland momentum going into tomorrow night’s game at home, but the Nuggets have only won three times at the Moda Center since the 2010 season.
First win in Denver since 2016 ? pic.twitter.com/rzKOJpX2tz
— Portland Trail Blazers (@trailblazers) May 2, 2019
Support Goes a Long Way
In Wednesday’s game, Portland held the lead for the last 43 minutes of play. Surprisingly, CJ McCollum and Damian Lillard only shot 13-for-37 collectively from the field. But it was the Blazers’ defense and the team’s bench, led by Rodney Hood, that kept them in this game.
I don’t think anything is going to be as exciting as a Dame buzzer beater, but after Game 2, the Trail Blazers have proved there’s more to them than just Lillard’s fourth quarter heroics.
Going Seven
The reality is, if Denver takes a game from Portland at home we will see these odds change again. But as the series continues, I wouldn’t be surprised if we see the Trail Blazers take off and move onto the Western Conference Finals.
It wasn’t entirely smooth sailing for either team during the first-round of the playoffs, with the Blazers needing five games and the Nuggets needing seven. Expect a hard fought affair in the second-round.
Long story short, this series is going seven.
A graduate of Sport Media at Ryerson University, Hayley is the ultimate student of sports. Whether she is playing it, watching it, debating it, or writing it, it's safe to assume sport consumes the majority of her life. She has worked both internationally and with the NBA.
