The NBA play-in tournament is a second-chance event that makes teams that finish from seventh to 10th place in the standings compete for the final two spots in each conference.
The NBA play-in tournament, a refresher in how it works
The Wolves lost to the Lakers in their play-in game Tuesday, but will get another chance to qualify for the playoffs by facing Oklahoma City on Friday.
April 13, 2023 at 5:00AM
Teams that finish seventh and eighth get two chances to win a qualifying game. The ninth- and 10th-place teams meet, with the winner of that game needing to win for a second time to secure a playoff berth.
The format is in its third season, but still isn't totally clear to many fans.
So here's a look at what is happening this week:
On Tuesday, the Lakers defeated the Timberwolves 108-102 in overtime to claim the No. 7 seed in the West and will meet No. 2 seed Memphis in the first round for a best-of-seven series. In the East, Atlanta beat Miami 116-105 to earn the No. 7 seed in the East and will face No. 2 Boston in the first round.
On Wednesday, Oklahoma City (No. 10 in the West) stopped New Orleans (No. 9) 123-118 to advance to a game against the Wolves at Target Center at 8:30 p.m. Friday (ESPN). In the East, No. 10 Chicago defeated No. 9 Toronto 109-105 and will play at Miami at 6 p.m. Friday (TNT). Both New Orleans and Toronto were eliminated.
The winners of Friday's games get the No. 8 seed in their conference playoffs and will face No. 1 seeds Denver (West) and Milwaukee (East).
Despite so-so record, Wolves have improved at crunch time.
