Rudy Gobert matched a career high with 35 points and had 11 rebounds to lead the charge for the Wolves (48-33). It marked the first time Gobert had scored 30-plus points in a Timberwolves uniform and just the second time of his career.

The 35 points tied his career high, a mark he first established back in March 2017. The double-double was Gobert's 35th of the season and eighth in the last 10 games, a stretch in which he's averaging 18.

Minnesota trailed Memphis by five at halftime of a game the Wolves needed to win for playoff positioning. A team that has so often depended on its defense for the last few seasons, the Timberwolves were struggling on that end of the floor Thursday.

There was no getting around it, Thursday’s game against the Grizzlies was the “biggest game of the season,” as Anthony Edwards said. For as inconsistent as the Wolves have been this season, they played like that statement was true in a 141-125 win over the Grizzlies that gives the Wolves a needed boost in the crowded Western Conference playoff race.

Minnesota star Anthony Edwards was slapped with his NBA-most 18th technical foul of the season. That prompts an automatic suspension for the next game the Timberwolves need to win to improve their seed for the playoffs.