The Minnesota Timberwolves will continue their final road swing of the regular season on Saturday, bringing a four-game winning streak to Philadelphia to face the slumping 76ers.
The Timberwolves (45-32) moved to 2-0 on their five-game expedition with a 105-90 win Thursday at Brooklyn.
Anthony Edwards scored 28 points while Rudy Gobert added 21 points and 18 rebounds. Naz Reid scored 13 points off the bench in his return from the one-game suspension issued to Reid and Donte DiVincenzo following a scuffle in Minnesota’s 123-104 win Sunday versus Detroit.
The Timberwolves head into the home stretch locked in a tight Western Conference playoff race. They ended Thursday tied with Memphis and Golden State in the win column, tied with the Grizzlies and Los Angeles Clippers in the loss column and just 1 1/2 games behind the fourth-place Los Angeles Lakers.
Minnesota also stands two games behind third-place Denver. The Timberwolves opened their road trip with a 140-139 win over the Nuggets in double overtime.
“Win. Win. Win. We want to be control of our own destiny, and the only way we put ourselves in that situation is by winning,” Reid said Thursday. “We keep winning, we’ll put ourselves in a situation where we don’t have to be in the play-in.”
The Timberwolves get another crack at a playoff rival when they conclude their road swing April 10 at Memphis. In the meantime, Minnesota looks to continue its recent streak against an opponent long since out of the postseason race.
Philadelphia (23-54) set a new mark for its season-worst losing streak on Thursday when it dropped its 10th straight in a 126-113 decision versus Milwaukee. The Sixers matched the franchise’s most losses since going 28-54 in 2016-17 — the organization’s last losing campaign.
Adem Bona provided some positive in Thursday’s loss with a career-high 28 points. The rookie big man’s previous best was 16.
Philadelphia also got a 24-point, 10-assist effort from Quentin Grimes, who has scored at least 22 points in 11 of his last 12 appearances. He has provided some consistency for a team ravaged by injury.
Paul George made his last of 41 appearances this season on March 4, which was also Philadelphia’s previous meeting with Minnesota. The Timberwolves won in Minneapolis, 126-112, with Reid’s 23 points leading seven Minnesota scorers in double figures.
Kelly Oubre Jr., who scored 24 points against the Timberwolves, last played on March 12. Former NBA Most Valuable Player Joel Embiid made 19 appearances for the Sixers before being shut down with a knee injury that will require surgery.
Tyrese Maxey, Philadelphia’s leading scorer at 26.3 points per game, is dealing with a finger injury. Though he last played on March 3, Sixers coach Nick Nurse would not rule out Maxey appearing in any of Philadelphia’s final five games.
“He’s just out for (Thursday). He did have another workout … the first one didn’t go that great,” Nurse said of Maxey. “He did receive more (X-ray) imaging, as well.”
–Field Level Media
