The Minnesota Timberwolves will face a shorthanded Brooklyn Nets squad on Friday amid a tightly contested Western Conference playoff race. The Nets ruled out Cam Johnson, D'Angelo Russell, Nic Claxton, Day'Ron Sharpe and Ziaire Williams for the matchup.

Brooklyn is virtually locked into the sixth-best draft lottery odds. The Nets have lost three of their last four games while giving extended minutes to several backups and G-League call-ups. Fernandez's squad will be on the second night of a back-to-back vs. Minnesota after Thursday's 133-109 loss to the Atlanta Hawks.

Trendon Watford, Keon Johnson, Jalen Wilson and Tyrese Martin will be the only regular Nets rotation members available vs. Minnesota.

Timberwolves to face shorthanded Nets amid West playoff race

Minnesota Timberwolves shooting guard Donte DiVincenzo (0) and Brooklyn Nets guard Reece Beekman (4) battle for a loose ball during the second half at Barclays Center.
Gregory Fisher-Imagn Images

Meanwhile, the Timberwolves are battling to avoid the West play-in tournament. Minnesota holds the same record as the Golden State Warriors and Memphis Grizzlies but sits in eighth place due to tiebreakers. All three teams are one game behind the Denver Nuggets and Los Angeles Clippers in fourth and fifth, respectively.

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Minnesota Timberwolves guard Anthony Edwards (5) controls the ball against Oklahoma City Thunder forward Chet Holmgren (7) in the fourth quarter during game one of the western conference finals for the 2025 NBA Playoffs at Paycom Center.
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Oklahoma City Thunder guard Shai Gilgeous-Alexander (2) drives against Minnesota Timberwolves forward Jaden McDaniels (3) in the fourth quarter during game one of the western conference finals for the 2025 NBA Playoffs at Paycom Center.
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If the season ended today, the Grizzlies would host the Timberwolves in the play-in tournament. The winner would face the second-seeded Houston Rockets, while the loser would face the winner of the Dallas Mavericks and Sacramento Kings for the eighth seed.

Minnesota picked up a pivotal 141-125 win over the Grizzlies on Thursday. Anthony Edwards posted 44 points on 13-of-19 shooting from the field, 7-of-11 from three and 11-of-13 from the free-throw line. Julius Randle added 31 points, 10 rebounds and five assists on 13-of-22 shooting.

The Timberwolves have a clean injury report for Friday's Nets matchup. Chris Finch's squad will close the season on Sunday with another favorable matchup against the Utah Jazz.

Meanwhile, the Grizzlies will face two West teams battling for playoff position in the Nuggets and Mavericks. The Warriors will close their schedule with matchups against the Portland Trail Blazers and Clippers.