The Phoenix Suns and Minnesota Timberwolves are set to face off for a Friday night clash of the Western Conference semi-titans with the 2024-25 season winding down.
At 41-32, the Timberwolves currently occupy the No. 8 seed in the West. But Minnesota is just 6.5 games behind the 48-26 Houston Rockets for the West's No. 2 seed. While Houston may be impossible to catch, the Timberwolves could certainly escape the play-in tournament bracket. The 41-31 L.A. Clippers are the West's present No. 6 seed.
All-Star Minnesota shooting guard and reigning Defensive Player of the Year center Rudy Gobert lead the charge for the team this season.
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The club had a shaky start during its first season sans Karl-Anthony Towns, but has stabilized of late. Veteran guard Mike Conley has looked more or less like his 2023-24 self at last, 2024 Sixth Man of the Year Naz Reid is looking destined to be one of the top free agent draws on the market this summer, and new additions Donte DiVincenzo and Julius Randle have finally rounded into form.
With a 35-38 record, the Suns are the No. 11 seed in the West, but they're just 0.5 games behind the Dallas Mavericks for the No. 10 seed in the conference and a shot at a play-in tournament berth. Phoenix has underwhelmed this year, despite enjoying largely healthy seasons from All-Stars Devin Booker and Kevin Durant.
So who will be available in this critical showdown of West hopefuls?
Per the league's latest injury report, former three-time All-Star Suns guard Bradley Beal remains on the shelf with a strained left hamstring. Two-way players Jalen Bridges and TyTy Washington are with the Suns' NBAGL affiliate club in Tempe, the Valley Suns.
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All three of the Timberwolves' two-way players are with the club's G League squad, the Iowa Wolves.
Per Duane Rankin of The Arizona Republic, Suns head coach Mike Budenholzer revealed his club's plan for the matchup during comments made to the media ahead of the contest. Perhaps unsurprisingly, Budenholzer emphasized how Phoenix intended to win the ball game on the offensive side of the floor.
"We just got to have a presence on the ball, we got to be connected off of it. Scramble, cover for each other, get hits on the boards and get out and make them run, make them play fast, make them have to transition," Budenholzer said.
Rankin reveals that, in his own pregame presser, Timberwolves head coach Chris Finch didn't seem to be taking the Suns for granted at all ahead of their Friday clash. Minnesota swept the Suns during their first-round playoff matchup last spring, and are currently 3-0 against them in the 2024-25 regular season.
"It's a little different every time we play them because they've gone through several different lineup iterations and lineup combinations," Finch said. "Fortunately for us, Beal is out tonight so that's one less guy we have to worry about. We have a number of guys who, when they're in the right mindset, are really good at playing one-on-one defense and being able to bother those guys just enough over the course of 48 minutes. That's what it comes down to."
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This story was originally published March 28, 2025 at 7:17 PM.