Minnesota Timberwolves vs Cleveland Cavaliers Starting Lineups and Depth Charts for March 8 | 2023-24 NBA Season 

The Minnesota Timberwolves and Cleveland Cavaliers clash in an anticipated contest on Friday. They are arguably the best underdog stories in both conferences this season. 60+ games in, nobody had the Timberwolves leading the West with a 44-19 record and the Cavaliers third in the East boasting a 40-22 record. The game has drawn a national TV spot on ESPN, and rightly so.

The Timberwolves enter this contest behind consecutive wins, while the Cavaliers have two wins and three losses in their past five games. Both teams are struggling with injuries, leading to their uneven runs recently. Friday could be no different.

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Minnesota Timberwolves vs. Cleveland Cavaliers injury reports for March 8

Minnesota Timberwolves injury report

The Timberwolves have four players on their injury report. Karl-Anthony Towns is out for at least a month for a torn meniscus in his left knee. Jaylen Clark (Achilles) is another indefinite absence. Monte Morris (hamstring) and Anthony Edwards (ankle) are day-to-day.

Cleveland Cavaliers injury report

The Cavaliers will be without five players. Donovan Mitchell (knee), Ty Jerome (ankle), Evan Mobley (ankle), Max Stus (knee) and Tristan Thompson (league suspension) are all sidelined.

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Minnesota Timberwolves vs. Cleveland Cavaliers starting lineups and depth charts for March 8

Minnesota Timberwolves starting lineup and depth chart

The Timberwolves starting lineup could be the same as their last game if Anthony Edwards is available. He will start next to Mike Conley, Kyle Anderson, Jalen McDaniels and Rudy Gobert. Nickeil Walker-Alexander is the likely replacement for Edwards if he doesn't suit up.

Point guards	Mike Conley	Monte Morris	Jordan McLaughlin
Shooting guards	Anthony Edwards	Nickeil Walker-Alexander	Wendell Moore Jr.
Small forwards	Jalen McDaniels	TJ Warren
Power forwards	Kyle Anderson	Naz Reid	Leonard Miller
Centers	Rudy Gobert	Luka Garza

Cleveland Cavaliers starting lineup and depth chart

The Cavaliers are likely to retain the starting lineup from their last game against the Hawks. Darius Garland and Isaac Okoro started in the backcourt, while Dean Wade, George Niang and Jarrett Allen formed the frontline.

Point guards	Darius Garland	Craig Porter
Shooting guards	Isaac Okoro	Caris LeVert	Sam Merrill
Small forwards	Dean Wade
Power forwards	Georges Niang
Centers	Jarrett Allen	Damian Jones	Pete Nance

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Minnesota Timberwolves vs. Cleveland Cavaliers key matchups

The Timberwolves will be the favorites in this game. However, the Wolves need to ensure they win the key matchups. Anthony Edwards will be in an intriguing battle against Isaac Okoro, who could guard him for most of the game. Okoro is solid against the opposing team's best perimeter defender. He can disrupt Edwards' rhythm.

The other battle is between former All-Stars Jarrett Allen and Rudy Gobert. The two bigs have been excellent in their roles this season, guarding the paint on defense and hurting teams offensively with their verticality and lob threat. With injuries on both sides, the teams will need more from their centers in this game on offense.