Minnesota Timberwolves vs. Portland Trail Blazers
Date: February 24th, 2026
Time: 9:00 PM CST
Location: Moda Center
Television Coverage: Peacock
Radio Coverage: KFAN FM, Wolves App, iHeart Radio
The Timberwolves had a golden opportunity Sunday night. Denver lost. The Lakers lost. Houston stumbled. The Western Conference standings basically opened the door, rolled out a red carpet and said, “Hey Minnesota, would you like to be tied for the 3-seed?”
Instead, the Wolves got absolutely shellacked by the Philadelphia 76ers on their own floor. 135 points worth of shellacked, to be exact.
And yes, context matters. Rudy Gobert was suspended after the Marvin Bagley flagrant. Naz Reid was out with shoulder soreness. Julius Randle was apparently under the weather, though he gave it a go. When you remove Gobert and Naz from the equation, you’re not just losing size. You’re losing the defensive backbone and a key offensive release valve. That’s real. But even with that caveat, Sunday was ugly.
Because yes, Minnesota was undersized. Yes, they were missing their Defensive Player of the Year center. But the bulk of the damage didn’t come from post dominance or paint bullying.
It came from the three-point line. Philadelphia shot 57 percent from deep. Twenty-one made threes on 37 attempts. That’s not “Gobert is suspended” stuff. That’s perimeter breakdown stuff. That’s effort and communication stuff. That’s point-of-attack defense stuff.
Meanwhile, Minnesota went just 10-for-33 from beyond the arc. Do the math. That’s a 33-point differential from three alone. In a 27-point loss. That’s not bad luck. That’s a defensive collapse.
The Familiar Wolves Problem
This has been the maddening paradox of the 2025-26 Wolves. Even when Gobert is available, the defense has been suspect at times. But when he’s out, the floor drops out completely.
Against Philly, the Wolves looked like a team that assumed the Sixers would roll over. Philadelphia was on the second night of a back-to-back. If anything, Minnesota should have had the fresher legs and the hungrier mindset. Instead, it looked like only one team bothered to show up.
Tyrese Maxey and company got comfortable early. Minnesota’s closeouts were late. Rotations were sluggish. Shooters were wide open. The Sixers weren’t just making tough shots, they were getting clean looks in rhythm. When the Wolves fall into that trap, when they start trading baskets instead of defending, things spiral. They don’t have the offensive consistency to win 135-130 track meets every night. That’s not who they are, and that’s not how they’re built.
This loss stung even more because of the standings math. Denver dropped to Golden State. The Lakers fell to Boston. Houston stumbled against New York on Saturday. If Minnesota handles its business, they’re neck-and-neck with the Nuggets for the 3-seed.
Instead? They’re staring at the 6-seed again. Play-in territory hovering in the background like an unwelcome sequel nobody asked for.
The Good News (Yes, There Is Some)
The West is still jam-packed. The margin is razor thin. One good road trip flips everything. And here’s what’s ahead: Portland, then the Clippers in L.A., then a final showdown with Denver on March 1.
If the Wolves string together three wins on this trip, they’re right back in the mix and will have likely leapfrogged Denver. The three seed is sitting there. Waiting.
But this team doesn’t get credit for theoretical standings jumps. They get credit for showing up. So now we pivot to Portland…
Keys to the Game
1. Don’t Walk In Like It’s Wrapped Up
Minnesota just beat Portland before the All-Star break. And that’s the danger. Because if you rewind a bit further to opening night, it took fourth-quarter heroics from Anthony Edwards to avoid losing to this same Blazers team.
They’re young. They’re scrappy. They don’t know they’re supposed to lose. If Minnesota strolls in assuming this is a get-right game, they’ll find themselves in another fourth-quarter coin flip on the road. That’s not the recipe.
Show up. Focused. Determined. Play like a team that understands the stakes.
2. Protect the Perimeter — For Real This Time
Sunday was a clinic in what not to do defensively. Maxey and the Sixers got comfortable because the Wolves failed at the point of attack. No resistance. Lazy closeouts. Slow rotations. That can’t happen again.
When Jaden McDaniels, Anthony Edwards, and Jaylen Clark are locked in, they can be suffocating on the perimeter. We’ve seen it. We saw it against OKC earlier this season. We’ve seen them swarm and choke teams out. They have to bring that version. Keep Portland’s guards from living in the paint. Contest shooters with purpose. Rotate like it matters.
Because it does.
3. Reclaim the Paint
Gobert is back. Randle should hopefully be recovered from his illness. Naz Reid remains questionable, but even if he’s limited, Minnesota has a size advantage. The Wolves looked lost without their interior presence against Philly. That shouldn’t happen again.
Run the floor. Crash the glass. Establish physicality early. Feed Gobert on lobs. Let Randle bully his way into high-percentage looks. Clean up misses with putbacks. Portland should not win the rebounding battle. Period.
4. Reestablish Defensive Identity
This is bigger than Portland. Bigger than one night.
If Minnesota wants to be taken seriously in April and May, giving up 120-130 points can’t be the norm. Two years ago, this team routinely held opponents under 100. That edge, that pride, has flickered this season. When they get bored, when they assume their offense will carry them, they bleed points.
On the road, you cannot let a young team build momentum. You can’t turn it into a fourth-quarter scramble. Assert control. Make Portland earn every bucket.
Time to Get Real.
After the Dallas win, Edwards said he wanted to go 25-0 down the stretch. That every game matters now.
That sounded great.
Sunday didn’t back it up.
There are 24 games left. The 3-seed is within reach. It doesn’t take a miracle run, just professionalism and consistency. The Wolves don’t need to be perfect. They just need to stop stepping on rakes.
Portland is overmatched on paper. But so was Memphis. So was New Orleans. We’ve seen how that story goes when Minnesota assumes it’s entitled to the result.
This road trip could define the season. Three wins and they’re talking about home-court advantage and avoiding OKC’s side of the bracket. Another slip-up and they’re flirting with the play-in.
Anthony Edwards can say all the right things, but talk is cheap and it’s time to get real. The only thing standing in this team’s way is effort, focus, and whether they decide this matters. We’ll find out Tuesday night in Portland whether 24-0 is a mission statement… or just another sound bite.