Wolves a Virtual Lock for 6th Seed After Home Loss to Charlotte

Minnesota is likely on its way to a first-round playoff series against the Nuggets.

Apr 5, 2026; Minneapolis, Minnesota, USA; Minnesota Timberwolves guard Donte DiVincenzo (0) shoots a three point shot as Charlotte Hornets forward Moussa Diabate (14) defends in the first quarter at Target Center. Mandatory Credit: Matt Blewett-Imagn Images | Matt Blewett-Imagn Images

A woeful second half led to the Timberwolves losing at home to the Charlotte Hornets by a score of 122-108 on Sunday night at Target Center in Minneapolis.

Not only did the Timberwolves lose, but the Phoenix Suns beat the Chicago Bulls, 120-110. Minnesota needed a win and a Suns loss to clinch a top-six seed in the Western Conference playoff race, and neither happened. They're still a heavy favorite to outlast Phoenix for the No. 6 seed, but it's now highly unlikely that they'll move up any higher in the standings.

Entering play Monday, the Wolves (46-32) are three games ahead of the Suns (43-35) and three games behind the fifth-place Houston Rockets (49-29). The Los Angeles Lakers and Denver Nuggets, both 50-28, are four games in front of the Wolves.

With only four games to go, the Wolves are a virtual lock to finish sixth.

If they finish sixth, they'll likely face the red-hot Nuggets in the first round of the playoffs. Denver has tied the Lakers in the standings, but with Luka Doncic and Austin Reaves both out with injuries, the Lakers — who lost to the Mavericks on Sunday — could slide all the way to fifth, with the Rockets moving up to fourth place.

Staying out of a series featuring the No. 4 and No. 5 seeds could be good for Minnesota because it would help them avoid Oklahoma City in the second round. Instead, if the Wolves advanced past the first round, they would almost certainly face the No. 2 seed San Antonio Spurs. However, the Nuggets loom as an exponentially more difficult first-round matchup than the injury-ravaged Lakers.

To catch the Rockets, the Wolves likely need to win out.

If they go 4-0, they need Houston to lose three of its last four games. In that scenario, both teams would finish 50-32, but Minnesota would own the head-to-head tiebreaker. If the Wolves go 3-1 to finish 49-33, they'd need Houston to lose its last four games. Again, Minnesota would own the tiebreaker, but only if Houston on Thursday night is one of their wins.

Houston losing three of four this week — the final week of the NBA's regular season — is possible considering they play Phoenix, Philadelphia, Minnesota, and Memphis. But the Wolves going 4-0 is a much more difficult idea since they're dealing with injuries and have to play at Orlando and Houston in between games against the woeful Pacers and Pelicans.