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The second Game 7 on Sunday will feature the Dallas Mavericks against the Phoenix Suns. With that said, it’s a good time to check out our NBA odds series, which includes our Mavericks-Suns prediction, odds, and pick we have laid out below.
The Mavericks staved off elimination by taking a 113-86 victory over the Suns to force a winner-take-all on Sunday. Luka Doncic won his first-ever elimination game by going off for 33 points, 11 rebounds, and eight assists. Dallas shot 41.0 percent from beyond the arc, as Reggie Bullock and Spencer Dinwiddie scored 19 points and 15 points, respectively, and combined for 10 three-pointers. Jalen Brunson also added 18 points of his own. Deandre Ayton led the way for Phoenix with 21 points and 11 rebounds, as Devin Booker and Chris Paul both had subpar outings. Booker scored just 19 points on 6-of-17 shooting and went 0-4 from three. CP3, meanwhile, had 13 points but took just seven shots on Friday. The winner of this game will move on to the Western Conference Finals, where they will face the Golden State Warriors.
Here are the Mavericks-Suns Game 7 NBA Playoffs odds, courtesy of FanDuel.
NBA Playoffs Odds: Mavericks-Suns Odds
Dallas Mavericks: +6.5 (-110)
Phoenix Suns: -6.5 (-110)
Over: 205 (-110)
Under: 205 (-110)
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Why the Mavericks could cover the spread
The Mavericks are facing elimination for the second straight game and will play their second Game 7 in the Doncic era. Dallas has yet to win a game on the road against the Suns in this series. And all of Phoenix's wins have been convincing, even though Game 1 just finished with a seven-point deficit. Dallas also lost by 20 and 30 points in the two most recent games at the Footprint Center. Nonetheless, as they say, anything can happen in Game 7.
The Mavericks have shown resiliency all year long. In addition, they seem to have found a way to slow down Chris Paul. CP3 has struggled over the past couple of games, as Dallas has targeted him on defense. The heavy load the Mavs are exerting on Paul defensively seems to be affecting his offense as well.
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The Mavericks will need their top-seven defense to come through on Sunday like it did in Game 6. Dallas held Phoenix to just 86 points, the Suns' lowest scoring output in the entire season, and just 39.7 percent field goal shooting. In fact, Phoenix's second lowest-scoring game this season also came against the Mavericks in Game 3. If Dallas somehow brings that defensive intensity on the road, they could very well advance to the conference finals.
Offensively, Dallas will need another Luka Doncic masterclass to win this game. But this is expected from the Slovenian Sensation. The Mavericks will need more from their supporting cast if they want to advance to the Western Conference Finals for the first time since 2011.
Spencer Dinwiddie had his best shooting game of the postseason in Game 6, where he went 5-of-7 from three to score 15 points. Reggie Bullock also had a strong outing with five three-pointers on Friday. But he did lay an egg in Game 5. If both Bullock and Dinwiddie could carry the momentum from that game and bring that same kind of shooting in Phoenix, there's a good chance for the Mavs to score the upset.
Why the Suns could cover the spread
The Suns are the best team in the league for a reason. They have the obvious edge with homecourt advantage, where they went 32-9 in the regular season. Phoenix has also been dominant at home in this series. They won Games 2 and 5 by a combined 50 points. Despite Game 1 being just a 7-point win, the Suns did win that game wire-to-wire. If we're going by the two most recent games in Phoenix, the Suns should have no issues covering the 6.5-point spread.
The Suns will need to figure out how to solve Dallas hunting Chris Paul on defense. The 37-year-old's offense has taken a hit as a result of this tactic by the Mavs. He's been shooting well in the series so far at 56.1 percent. But he's averaging less than 10 shot attempts per game. With this being a do-or-die game, expect the veteran star to be more aggressive with his shot.
Devin Booker had a subpar outing in Game 6. The trend in these playoffs so far is that Booker plays better the next game after having a quiet evening. If Booker and Paul play like their All-Star selves, the Suns could be well on their way to their second straight conference finals.
Final Mavericks-Suns Prediction & Pick
This is a tough pick since anything can happen in a Game 7. But given how this series has gone so far, I think the Suns will pull off the win and cover the spread. They've been dominant at home against the Mavericks and they've fed off the raucous Footprint Center crowd.
Final Mavericks-Suns Prediction & Pick: Suns: -7 (-110)
