In their battle for the Western Conference’s leading position, the Minnesota Timberwolves anticipate the return of one of their key players as they aim to recover from a tough defeat prior to facing the Atlanta Hawks on Friday night in Minneapolis.

The Timberwolves (55-25) are coming off a 116-107 loss against the Denver Nuggets while playing away on Wednesday night. This setback pulled them one game behind the Nuggets in the quest for the top seed in the Western Conference with just two games left to play.

Point guard of the Timberwolves, Mike Conley, expressed determination along with his teammates to chase after the No. 1 seed, emphasizing that their focus remains on winning their final pair of games.

“I’d love to have the one seed, I’m not going to lie,” Conley said. “But I also said that it doesn’t matter what seed you’ve got, you’re going to play a dog in the first round.”

Meanwhile, the Atlanta Hawks (36-44) are aiming to break free from a recent slump as they approach the play-in tournament in the Eastern Conference.

Positioned 10th in the conference standings, they currently trail the Chicago Bulls in ninth place by 1 1/2 games coming into Thursday’s matches.

Guard for the Hawks, Trae Young, made his comeback on Wednesday against the Charlotte Hornets, contributing 14 points and 11 assists in 21 minutes, yet the Hawks suffered a narrow 115-114 loss on their home court.

Having returned from an injury to his left pinkie ligament, Young reported no lingering concerns.

“It feels good,” Young said. “My hand feels good.”

To err on the side of caution, Hawks coach Quin Snyder opted to restrict Young’s minutes.

“He seemed comfortable to me,” Snyder said.

An additional All-Star is anticipated to make his comeback on Friday.

Karl-Anthony Towns, the dominant big man for the Timberwolves who has been sidelined since March 4 due to a torn meniscus in his left knee, is reportedly set to return against the Hawks as he gears up for the upcoming playoffs. Towns’ status was upgraded to questionable on Thursday.

At the age of 28, Towns has been averaging 22.1 points and 8.4 rebounds this season, boasting a shooting percentage of 50.6 from the field and 42.3 from beyond the arc.

Towns stands as the second-highest scorer in the Timberwolves lineup after Anthony Edwards, who holds averages of 26.3 points, 5.5 rebounds, and 5.2 assists.

Rudy Gobert follows as the third scorer, recording 13.7 points in addition to leading the team with 12.9 rebounds.

Leading the charge for the Hawks in scoring is Trae Young, averaging 26.1 points and 10.8 assists per game. Dejounte Murray (22.5 points per game) and Bogdan Bogdanovic (16.9 points) complete their top three scorers.

Acknowledging that some Timberwolves players are dealing with fatigue as the regular season nears its end, Gobert, a former Utah Jazz player, stressed the importance of persevering towards the ultimate goal of contending for a championship.

“We have to play through it,” Gobert said. “There’s going to be fatigue in the postseason, too. We’re going to have to find it deep inside. Each one of us is going to have to find it and (is) going to have to do what it takes for the team to win.”