The Minnesota Timberwolves’ 2026-27 schedule comes with plenty of spotlight moments, but the biggest one is easy to spot: a Christmas Day game at Target Center for the first time ever.
Minnesota will host the Oklahoma City Thunder on Friday, Dec. 25 at 7 p.m. on ABC, giving the Wolves their fifth Christmas Day appearance and their third straight. The full regular season also includes 27 nationally televised games, another sign that this team is going to be in the center of the league’s attention.
The season starts on the road, where the Timberwolves will face the Miami Heat on Wednesday, Oct. 21 at 6:30 p.m. on ESPN. It’s the first time Minnesota has opened against Miami, and it extends a stretch that now makes it four straight seasons starting away from home. The first game at Target Center comes four days later, when the Wolves host the Toronto Raptors on Sunday, Oct. 25 at 6 p.m.
Minnesota has been steady in those home openers. The Timberwolves have won 10 in a row and 13 of their last 14 dating back to the 2013-14 season.
There’s another major date circled on the calendar, too. The team said it will make an announcement on Thursday, Aug. 14 about the upcoming jersey retirement celebration for Hall of Famer Kevin Garnett.
The home slate brings no shortage of marquee matchups. The Wolves will see the defending NBA Champion New York Knicks on Thursday, Nov. 19, then get two shots at the Los Angeles Lakers on Wednesday, Dec. 16 and Friday, Dec.
- Denver comes to town on Thursday, Dec. 31 and Wednesday, Jan. 27, and Philadelphia visits on Saturday, March 13.
One of the defining stretches of the schedule is a franchise-record eight-game homestand from Nov. 8-23. On the other end, Minnesota’s longest road swing runs from April 4-9 and lasts four games.
The Timberwolves will play 80 regular season games, with two more to be added after the Emirates NBA Cup Group Stage and Quarterfinals in December. They open NBA Cup play at home against the LA Clippers on Friday, Oct. 30 and are grouped in West Group B with the Clippers, Memphis Grizzlies, New Orleans Pelicans and Thunder.
Minnesota has 13 back-to-back sets this season, the same total as last year. The schedule breaks down to 7 games in October, 14 in November, 12 in December, 16 in January, 10 in February, 15 in March and 6 in April.
The Wolves will play most often on Fridays and Sundays, and there are four instances where they’ll face the same opponent in consecutive games, including two meetings with the Lakers in December and April.
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For a team coming off a playoff appearance, the hope is that chemistry off the floor carries over once the games count. Goberts clips offered exactly the kind of small but encouraging snapshot supporters like to see in August: a group getting in work together, staying connected, and treating the offseason as more than just a break before camp. [Read more 🡒]
Naz Reids Return Will Hit Timberwolves Fans In Every Way
Naz Reids next trip to Target Center figures to carry a little extra weight for Timberwolves fans. After seven seasons in Minnesota, the longtime reserve became a bigger part of the franchises identity than a typical bench scorer ever does, capped by his NBA Sixth Man of the Year season in 2023-24 before he was sent to Charlotte in June in the LaMelo Ball trade.
Now expected to start for the Hornets, Reid will make his return to Minneapolis on January 29, and the building should treat it like one of those rare regular-season nights that feels personal. He was embraced here for his production, his growth and the way he connected with the fan base, so the reaction inside Target Center is likely to be strong when he steps back on the floor in a different uniform. [Read more 🡒]
Timberwolves Spur A New Debate Fans Will Want To Watch
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The wrinkle is that the first meeting on Oct. 31 will not be nationally televised, a decision that is likely to stir the usual debate about how the NBA chooses to showcase its most marketable young teams. From a basketball standpoint, it is the kind of game that can tell you something real about both sides, especially with Minnesota trying to blend its new pieces and San Antonio continuing to build around Wembanyama. Even before the games tip off, it already feels like one of those matchups the league may end up wishing it had put in a bigger spotlight. [Read more 🡒]