The Minnesota Timberwolves close the regular season against the New Orleans Pelicans on April 12, 2026, at Target Center in Minneapolis, with tipoff set for 7:30 p.m. CDT. Minnesota will do it with a cautious lineup plan in place, as Rudy Gobert is expected not to play and Julius Randle is probably limited or out.
The matchup is the Timberwolves’ Game 82, and it comes after they already punched their playoff ticket. Anthony Edwards and Jaden McDaniels may get a cautious ramp-up, while Kyle Anderson could handle the ball a lot and Terrence Shannon Jr., Jaylen Clark and Joan Beringer may see extended opportunities. The game will air on FanDuel Sports Network - North, with radio coverage on KFAN FM, the Wolves App and iHeart Radio.
That matters because Minnesota is still waiting for final seeding after finishing 81 games, and the difference between a six seed and a three seed was still in reach with a few different late-game results. The Wolves are trying to protect health without losing rhythm, a balance that carries extra weight for a team that has already made back-to-back Western Conference Finals.
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The tension is in what Minnesota chooses to prioritize. The standings will not change the fact that the Wolves are in, but the way they manage Edwards, McDaniels and the rest of the rotation in the finale will shape how they enter the postseason and whether the game becomes more about experimentation than execution.
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By the time the final horn sounds, the bigger story will not be the Pelicans on the other side. It will be whether the Timberwolves leave Target Center intact, seeded and ready for the playoff run that has been waiting for them since the ticket was clinched.
