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Here is this week's power rankings update. It shouldn't surprise anyone that the Wolves didn't move too much this week, going 1-2 over that span (or .500 if you count the Denver win on Monday). The general theme in the blurbs this week surrounded the Wolves' chances (or lack thereof) at a playoff spot.
Tonight, the Wolves play the Bucks at 7pm, and will try to get back over .500 once again.
Average Ranking: 15.85 (Last week: 15.42)
No. 16 (Last Week: 15): Jason Patt, SB Nation
The Wolves had a chance to possibly make a run, but home losses to the Knicks and Raptors ruined that. Minnesota isn't officially eliminated from playoff contention, but they may as well be.
No. 16 (Last Week: 16): Marc Stein, ESPN
No team in circulation is harder to rank. They've ridden a 7-3 surge to hold firm at .500. That oft-discussed nightly point differential (plus-3.9) continues to suggest they're one of the league's top 10 teams. But what do you do when you know the Wolves have little to no shot of snagging a playoff spot?
No. 15 (Last Week: 15): Marc Spears, Yahoo! Sports
Minnesota's already bleak playoff hopes in the West became dimmer after it dropped the first two games of a four-game homestand.
No. 16 (Last Week: 15): Matt Moore, CBS Sports
They're the guys who show up to browse at a store five minutes before it closes. It might be too late, but they're still shopping for that playoff spot.
No. 15 (Last Week: 15): USA Today Writers' Poll
Critics of Kevin Love's defense should consider that he ends opponents' possessions 10 times a game via rebounds.
No. 17 (Last Week: 16): Matt Dollinger, Sports Illustrated
Home losses to the Raptors and Knicks make the Wolves' playoff hopes just that -- hopes. Trailing No. 8 Memphis and Phoenix by five games, they need a perfect run this week against three losing opponents to stay in the hunt.
No. 16 (Last Week: 15): John Schuhmann, NBA.com
They made a nice little run after the break, but Wednesday's wire-to-wire loss to the Knicks made it OK to throw dirt on the Wolves' playoff chances. They're 4-11 on the second night of back-to-backs and will play six more over the final month of the season. Their starting lineup has been pretty ridiculous offensively since the break, but their bench (J.J. Barea in particular) has continued to struggle.