Timberwolves Face Brutal 10-Game Stretch With Playoff Seeding at Stake

The Timberwolves have won eight of their last ten games, including six of their first eight games coming out of the All-Star break. That run has seen them jump to third in the Western Conference. However, the Wolves face a stretch of games coming up that could have a significant impact on their postseason seeding.

Minnesota begins a four-game road trip in Los Angeles to take on the Lakers on Tuesday night. That is followed up the next night with a showdown against the Clippers. Two days later, the Timberwolves take on Golden State. Then on Sunday, Minnesota squares off with the top-seeded Thunder in Oklahoma City.

They then return home to take on the Suns the following Tuesday. All five games are against teams currently in the Western Conference playoffs, with the Lakers and Suns within three games of Minnesota.

While the Thunder and Spurs are seemingly out of reach with just 18 games left in the season, with a strong run over the next five games, Minnesota could give itself a cushion in its effort to secure the No. 3 seed. If the goal is to put off a playoff rematch with the Thunder for as long as possible, then locking up the No. 3 seed heading into the postseason is vital.

When looking further down the schedule, it's even more important that Minnesota has a good run during this stretch of five games. Four of the next five games after the March 17 Suns showdown are against playoff-bound teams. That includes a tricky three-game stretch that features games against the top two teams in the East, split by a game against the Rockets, who currently trail Minnesota by just a half-game in the standings.

Here's a complete look at the full ten game stretch:

Tuesday, March 10: at Lakers (39-25), 10 p.m. CT, NBC/Peacock
Wednesday, March 11: at Clippers (32-32), 9:30 p.m. CT, FanDuel Sports Network
Friday, March 13: at Golden State Warriors (32-32), 9 p.m. CT, Amazon Prime Video
Sunday, March 15: at Thunder (51-15), 12 p.m. CT, ABC
Tuesday, March 17: vs. Suns (37-27), 7 p.m. CT, FanDuel Sports Network
Wednesday, March 18: vs. Jazz (20-45), 7 p.m. CT, FanDuel Sports Network
Friday, March 20: vs. Trail Blazers (31-34), 7 p.m. CT, FanDuel Sports Network
Sunday, March 22: at Celtics (43-21), 7 p.m. CT, NBC/Peacock
Wednesday, March 25: vs. Rockets (39-24), 8:30 p.m. CT, ESPN
Saturday, March 28: vs. Pistons (45-18), 4:30 p.m. CT, ABC

All but two games in that run are against teams with winning records, while nine of the ten are currently in playoff spots. It's an overall brutal run of games that will test the Wolves on multiple fronts. Every single game will have major implications for playoff seeding.