Denver injuries could help Timberwolves earn No. 1 seed

The top three seeds in the West will be determined on the final day of the regular season.

The top three seeds in the Western Conference and all of the play-in tournament matchups will be determined Sunday. It's the final day of the regular season and the Timberwolves, Thunder and Nuggets enter the day with identical records (56-25).

The Thunder are in the driver's seat for the No. 1 seed because they own the three-way tiebreaker over the Wolves and Nuggets. But if the Nuggets lose in Memphis and the Timberwolves beat the Suns, the Timberwolves will be the No. 1 seed regardless of what happens between the Thunder and Mavericks.

Typically, the Nuggets would be a strong favorite to beat the lowly Grizzlies. But Saturday's injury report unveiled by Denver reveals that the defending champs could be without a bunch of key players. In fact, the entire starting five is on the injury report with questionable designations.

Nikola Jokic has an inflamed left hip. Jamal Murray has an inflamed right knee. Michael Porter Jr. has an illness. Kentavious Caldwell-Pope has a right shoulder strain and Aaron Gordon is dealing with a right foot strain.

The reality is that Denver is well aware that its only path to the No. 1 seed is by beating Memphis and getting the Suns and Mavericks to defeat the Timberwolves and Thunder, respectively. And the Mavericks are resting pretty much every key player because they have nothing to play for.

Meanwhile, the Timberwolves can expect a significant effort from Phoenix becuase the Suns are playing to stay out of the play-in tournament. If the Suns win and the Pelicans lose to the the Lakers, the Suns get the No. 6 seed. But if the Pelicans win it doesn't matter what the Suns do.

Both games – Wolves vs. Suns and Pelicans vs. Lakers – start at 2:30 p.m. CT.

Minnesota could drop to the No. 3 seed if they lose and both the Thunder and Nuggets win. That would set them up with a first-round series against the Pelicans or Suns. But if they get the No. 1 or No. 2 seed they won't know who they're playing until the play-in tournament is settled.