Nuggets @ Trail Blazers Game 3 Predictions: Take the under 227

Zach Rainey has a low scoring game as his top Pick for Game 3 of the tight Nuggets/Trail Blazers series. Read on to find out why...

This Portland-Denver series in my opinion is the closest of the first round. 

Dame Time terrifies me. He can basically flip the switch in the fourth quarter and in my opinion is just below Stephen Curry as a shooter in this league. He has all of the range as well as the confidence. 

Now back at home, the Nuggets will almost have to play perfect to overcome the potential Dame Time late game surge. 

Nikola Jokic still looks like the league’s MVP, but the playoffs are a different monster and I know they know that after last year’s series against Utah. 

They were able to even the series in Game 2 because they were able to withstand Lillard’s 42 points by limiting everyone else. That has been Portland’s problem historically; Lillard and McCollum basically have to combine for 60 and then find roughly 50-55 points from everyone else. 

That didn’t happen in Game 2, as Lillard and McCollum combined for 63, but had just one other player in double digits. Jusuf Nurkic grabbed 14 rebounds, but played just 24 minutes before fouling out with just seven points. 

I also had a feeling that we weren’t going to get consistent “Melo” and instead we got Carmelo Anthony in Game 2. He had just five points on 1-of-5 shooting and never got into the flow of the game.  

As of writing, nearly 57 percent of the bets are on Portland -3.5 tonight with 69 percent of the money going toward Portland as well. 

Instead of taking a side, I’m looking at the under. 

The public is all over the over with nearly 70 percent of the bets, while the under is getting 59 percent of the money. 

My official pick is under 227. It opened at 229 and despite most of the bets going on the over, the total has dipped two points. I think this series gets gritty and I think we see that tonight now that the series has moved to Portland. 

For our prop bet, I’m taking Paul Milsap under Points+Rebounds+Assists at 13.5. 

Milsap had a strong showing in Game 2 after getting 15 points seven rebounds and three assists. I think his numbers gravitate back closer to Game 1 wen he had just three points three rebounds and four assists.