Minnesota Timberwolves: 2020-21 preseason schedule, important dates

The Minnesota Timberwolves have announced their 2020-21 preseason schedule.

Ladies and gentlemen, we’re only two weeks away from Minnesota Timberwolves basketball.

Late this week, the NBA announced the 2020-21 preseason schedule. Each team is playing between two and four games and will have the opportunity to play at least one home game and at least one road game.

There are also plenty of other important dates out there to look forward to in the coming weeks.

Minnesota Timberwolves 2020-21 preseason schedule

On Saturday, Dec. 12, the Timberwolves will take the court in a competitive capacity to play against an opposing team for the first time since early March. The 2020-21 preseason gets underway for the Wolves with a 7 p.m. tip-off at Target Center against the Memphis Grizzlies.

For some reason, the Wolves will also host the Grizzlies just 48 hours later — same time, same place, same squads. Perhaps the NBA is trying to limit travel as much as possible, and it may not be a shock to see more home-and-home series and the possibility of longer homestands during the regular season as well. Just a guess, but it could make some sense.

The Wolves will then have a couple of days off before traveling straight down I-35 for a 7:30 p.m. tip-off against the Dallas Mavericks on Dec. 17.

After playing three preseason games in a span of only six days, the regular season will kick off on Dec. 22.

Key dates for the Minnesota Timberwolves during the 2020-21 season

We don’t yet know when the Wolves will play their first game. There isn’t any information on the broadcast schedule for either preseason or the regular season as of yet, either, but the league has released some key dates.

The 72-game regular season will run from Dec. 22 through the middle of May, with the Finals planned for mid-July.

The All-Star break will be from March 5 to 10. We know that the league moved the event out of Indianapolis and is awarding the city the 2024 event, but the NBA has not yet said where this year’s (presumably fan-less) festivities will take place.

The most exciting addition to this year’s campaign will be the play-in tournament scheduled for May 18 to 21. This sort of event will be positive for likely fringe playoff teams such as the Wolves, as it will pit the No. 7 and No. 8 teams together in a play-in game for the No. 7 seed and the loser will play the winner of a game between the No. 9 and No. 10 teams.

Put simply, if the Wolves can manage to be one of the 10 best teams in the Western Conference, they’ll have a chance to make the playoffs for what would be just the second time in 18 seasons.

Yes, the Wolves will have their work cut out for them to make the playoffs in the West, but they’ll at least have a better chance than in a normal season.

Stay tuned for more information regarding the broadcast schedule and when the Minnesota Timberwolves’ first regular-season game will go down.