National Basketball Association
Preview
Utah at Minnesota
When: 7:00 PM ET, Sunday, March 16, 2025
Where: Target Center, Minneapolis, Minnesota

The Minnesota Timberwolves have been intent on improving their playoff seeding as much as possible in the final month of the regular season.

The Utah Jazz seem equally as determined to improve their chances in the NBA draft lottery.

Teams on contrasting arcs will meet when the Timberwolves (39-29) tip off against the Jazz (15-52) on Sunday evening in Minneapolis.

Minnesota has won seven straight, including a 118-111 comeback win against the Orlando Magic on Friday night. It is the longest winning streak of the season for the Timberwolves, who have surged to seventh place in the Western Conference.

"We've matured as a team. We're still maturing as a team," the Timberwolves' Donte DiVincenzo said.

"We're more comfortable with each other and what everybody's good at. (We're) understanding that one mistake or one bad play from somebody is not the end of the world. It's all about staying together."

Meanwhile, the best players on the Jazz often are staying on the bench.

Utah already has been docked $100,000 by the NBA for violating the league's player participation policy for keeping Lauri Markkanen out for nine games on the injury report. The Jazz tried a different approach in their most recent game Friday as Markkanen sat the entire second half and Walker Kessler, who was not listed on the injury report, watched the entire game in his uniform on the bench.

Jazz coach Will Hardy has tried to reframe the apparent tanking attempt as a way to evaluate younger players who have not played as much this season.

What is Hardy looking to see from the players who do take the court?

"It's about understanding the things that are important to us as a team and as an organization," Hardy said. "Can you go out and execute the basics of the game plan?

"It's not about shot making. It's not about points. ... I care about the execution defensively, and it's about team defense and the things that you can control."

Utah will face a tough test on defense as it tries to stop the Timberwolves, who are led by Anthony Edwards. The 23-year-old guard is averaging 27.2 points on 44.2-percent shooting this season, including 40.6 percent from 3-point range.

Julius Randle ranks second on the Timberwolves with 18.9 points per game to go along with 7.2 rebounds, while Naz Reid contributes 14.7 points and 6.1 boards.

Markkanen leads the Jazz with 19.1 points per game. Second-leading scorer John Collins (19.0 points) is out with an ankle sprain, but Collin Sexton can chip in, with 18.0 points per game.

This is the third of four meetings between the Timberwolves and Jazz during the regular season.

Minnesota won the first matchup 138-113 on Jan. 30 in Utah. The teams met again four weeks later, when the Jazz held on for a 117-116 win on their home court.

--Field Level Media

Stats and Records
Team Comparison
  W/L Strk Home Away Day Night Div Conf
Utah 15-52 L8 8-25 7-27 3-1 12-51 2-9 7-37
Minnesota 39-29 W7 19-14 20-15 3-3 36-26 8-5 27-18
Last Meeting
Utah Minnesota
Date Away Home Pts Reb FG% Pts Reb FG%
2/28/25 MIN 116 UTA 117 117 60 51.1 116 40 43.6
Player Stats
Previous Matchup
Points Player Total FG% FTM
Utah J. Collins 29 66.7 2
Minnesota N. Reid 27 40.0 1
Rebounds Player Total Off Def
Utah K. Filipowski 13 5 8
Minnesota N. Reid 11 4 7
Assists Player  
Utah I. Collier 14
Minnesota M. Conley 6
Season
Points Player Total FG% FTM
Utah C. Sexton 1002 46.8 188
Minnesota A. Edwards 1833 44.2 337
Rebounds Player Total Off Def
Utah W. Kessler 662 245 417
Minnesota R. Gobert 632 210 422
Assists Player  
Utah I. Collier 376
Minnesota A. Edwards 309
Quickchart Matchup
Utah Utah Off vs  Minnesota Minnesota Defense
Utah Off vs Minnesota - Points For 112.6 Points For
Utah Off vs Minnesota - Points Against 109.0 Points Against
Utah - FG% 45.8 FG%
Minnesota - FG% 45.8 FG%
Utah - Reb 46.0 Reb
Minnesota - Reb 43.4 Reb
Minnesota Minnesota Off vs  Utah Utah Defense
Minnesota Off vs Utah - Points For 112.9 Points For
Minnesota Off vs Utah - Points Against 119.9 Points Against
Minnesota - FG% 46.3 FG%
Utah - FG% 47.4 FG%
Minnesota - Reb 44.0 Reb
Utah - Reb 43.3 Reb