Wolves One Week from Playoffs, with Tough Seeding Reality Ahead

The NBA regular season comes to a close next Sunday, April 12, and the Minnesota Timberwolves are on the verge of securing a top-six seed to avoid the play-in tournament. In fact, Minnesota can clinch a playoff spot on Sunday if they beat the Charlotte Hornets and the Phoenix Suns lose to the Chicago Bulls.

The Wolves enter play Sunday with a 46-31 record. They're two games behind fifth-place Houston (48-29), and four games in front of seventh-place Phoenix (42-35). They're also 3.5 games behind fourth-place Denver (50-28), and four games behind the third-place Lakers (50-27).

Catching the Lakers or Nuggets is almost impossible at this point, so Minnesota appears destined for sixth or fifth in the Western Conference playoff race. That means they're probably going on the road in the first round of the playoffs. It may only be a matter of where they're going.

Wolves' remaining games:

Sunday: vs. Charlotte, 6 p.m.
Tuesday: at Indiana, 6 p.m.
Wednesday: at Orlando, 6 p.m.
Friday: at Houston, 8:30 p.m.
Sunday: vs. New Orleans, 7:30 p.m.

Prediction: They win three of five and finish 49-33.

Because Anthony Edwards (knee) and Naz Reid (shoulder) are banged up, and Jaden McDaniels is out for the rest of the regular season with a knee injury, the Wolves could take their foot off the gas and simply settle for sixth while allowing Edwards and Reid to get as healthy as possible for the postseason.

The Lakers are in danger of losing home court in the first round now that Luka Doncic and Austin Reaves are out with injuries. The Wolves probably won't catch them, but the Nuggets seem like a lock to jump them for third, while the Rockets, only two games behind L.A., could pass them and move into fourth.

Are we looking at the top six in the West of No. 1 Oklahoma City, No. 2 San Antonio, No. 3 Denver, No. 4 Houston, No. 5 Los Angeles, and No. 6 Minnesota?

The most likely scenario in which the Wolves get the No. 5 seed is if they pass the Rockets, while the Nuggets and Lakers finish third and fourth, respectively. That would have Minnesota in Los Angeles for a best-of-seven series against a Lakers team that is almost certainly going to be without Doncic and Reaves.

Bottom line: If the Wolves want the Lakers in Round 1, they probably need to finish fifth. If they're comfortable with going to Denver in the first round, they probably need to finish sixth.

Lakers' remaining games:

Sunday: at Dallas, 6:30 p.m.
Tuesday: vs. Oklahoma City, 9:30 p.m.
Thursday: at Golden State, 9 p.m.
Friday: vs. Phoenix, 9:30 p.m.
Sunday: vs. Utah, 7:30 p.m.

Prediction: They lose four of five and finish 51-31.

Nuggets' remaining games:

Monday: vs. Portland, 8 p.m.
Wednesday: vs. Memphis, 8 p.m.
Friday: vs. Oklahoma City, 8 p.m.
Sunday: at San Antonio, 7:30 p.m.

Prediction: They win three of four and finish 53-29.

Rockets' remaining games:

Sunday: at Golden State, 9 p.m.
Tuesday: at Phoenix, 10 p.m.
Thursday: vs. Philadelphia, 7 p.m.
Friday: vs. Minnesota, 8:30 p.m.
Sunday: vs. Memphis, 7:30 p.m.

Prediction: They win three of five and finish 51-31.

If all of it goes as predicted, the Nuggets are the three, the Wolves are the six, and the Lakers get the four over Houston due to a head-to-head tiebreaker.

Who's ready for the playoffs? The Wolves better get ready, because time is running out and they may have to accept their fate as the No. 6 seed for a second year in a row.