The Minnesota Timberwolves welcome the San Antonio Spurs to the Target Center on Tuesday night for a Western Conference matchup at 9:30 p.m. ET on ESPN. Losers of three straight, the Timberwolves are 4.5 games out of the eighth and final playoff spot. San Antonio, meanwhile, has already clinched another trip to the postseason and is chasing the Golden State Warriors for the league's best record.
Young Timberwolves ravenous for return to playoffs
Minnesota has not appeared in the postseason since the 2003–04 season. The only other franchises from the four major professional sports that have failed to appear in their league’s playoffs since the 2003 season are the NFL’s Buffalo Bills (since 1999) and Cleveland Browns (since 2002) along with MLB’s Seattle Mariners (since 2001) and Miami Marlins (since 2003).