Timberwolves should have an opportunity to rattle off some wins in March

The Minnesota Timberwolves return from the All-Star break with a brutal stretch of games ahead, beginning with Friday night's road matchup against the Houston Rockets, who currently sit fourth in the Western Conference standings.

The end of February also includes back-to-back games against the Western Conference-leading Oklahoma City Thunder and a road matchup against the Los Angeles Lakers. But the schedule then eases up significantly, beginning with a road game against the sputtering Utah Jazz on the last day of February and continuing with an easier slate of games in March.

The Wolves have 14 games on their schedule in March, nine of which will be at home at Target Center in Minneapolis, including a weeklong home stand in mid-March. Only four of the games are against teams that currently have a winning record, while they will have several against bottom feeders, including a pair against the West-worst New Orleans Pelicans.

For a Wolves team that's been playing better in recent weeks and should be getting healthier — Mike Conley, Julius Randle and Donte DiVincenzo are all expected to return at some point in the coming weeks — March should provide plenty of opportunities to improve their standing in the West, and perhaps even rattle off an extended winning streak.

Here are three things that stand out about the Wolves' schedule in March:

Bottom feeders

The Wolves have as many games against the NBA's worst (four) as they do against teams with a winning record in March. The Wolves visit the Charlotte Hornets (14-39, 14th in East) March 5, they host the Jazz (13-41, 14th in West) March 16 and have back-to-back home games against the Pelicans, 13-42, 15th in West) on March 19 and 21. Only one NBA team has a worse record than the Hornets, Jazz and Pelicans: the Washington Wizards. Minnesota should win all these games.

But the Wolves also tend to struggle handling their business in these games against inferior opponents, including a home loss to the league-worst Wizards on Feb. 1, although they were missing Anthony Edwards for that matchup. Either way, Minnesota will need to handle its business in March against inferior opponents as it'll have plenty of those opportunities.

In addition to the games against the Hornets, Jazz and Pelicans, the Wolves also play the Phoenix Suns (26-28, 11th in West) twice, Philadelphia 76ers (20-34, 11th in East), Miami Heat (25-28, ninth in East), San Antonio Spurs (23-29, 12th in West) — now without Victor Wembanyama for the remainder of the season — and Orlando Magic (27-29, seventh in East).

That's 10 total games against teams with losing records, including four against some of the NBA's biggest losers. If the Wolves handle their business, they should be able to rattle off a win streak and improve their standing in the Western Conference. If their struggles continue against bottom-tier competition, they'll find themselves fighting for a play-in spot.

Working from home

Not only are nine of Minnesota's 14 games in March taking place at Target Center, the Wolves get a five-game weeklong home stand from March 14-21 with only one back to back. It starts with a matchup against the Magic on March 14, then the March 16 game against the Jazz, a date with the Indiana Pacers the next night before the two games vs. the Pelicans.

The Pacers are the only team during that stretch that currently has a winning record. Once again, this is a prime chance for the Wolves to rattle off some wins, as long as they can keep their previous home struggles in the rearview mirror.

Some tough matchups

The Wolves do have four tougher games in March against teams with winning records, headlined by a March 12 matchup against the Denver Nuggets (36-19, third in West). They also have two games against the Pacers, and Minnesota closes the March slate by hosting the Detroit Pistons (29-26, sixth in East) on March 30. It's still not exactly a gauntlet of games.

The Nuggets game will be a slugfest, no doubt. Denver is playing well, features the league's best player in Nikola Jokic and is still in the mix for the top seed, 8.5 games back of the Thunder. The Pacers are solid (30-23, third in East), and the first matchup comes on the second night of a back to back on March 17 and the other on the road on March 24, but there's no reason the Wolves shouldn't be able to emerge with a couple victories. Same goes for the Pistons matchup.

Ultimately, the month of March will be an opportunity for the Wolves to rattle off some wins and rise up the Western Conference standings. It comes down to handling business against inferior opponents and taking care of home court.