1989–90 Minnesota Timberwolves season

• Harvey Ratner
• Marv Wolfenson (Kevin Harlan, Len Elmore, Tom Hanneman) (Kevin Harlan, Dave Shea)

The 1989–90 Minnesota Timberwolves season was the first season for the Minnesota Timberwolves in the National Basketball Association. Nearly 30 years after the Lakers left Minneapolis, Minnesota for Los Angeles, California, the NBA returned to Minnesota with an expansion team known as the "Timberwolves"; the Orlando Magic also joined the NBA in 1989 via expansion. The team revealed their inaugural logo of a blue wolf with green eyes in front of a silver basketball, and new uniforms with the color scheme of blue, green, white, and silver. For their inaugural season, the Timberwolves played their home games at the Hubert H. Humphrey Metrodome in Minneapolis, which was home to the NFL's Minnesota Vikings, and also home to the MLB's Minnesota Twins.

In the 1989 NBA expansion draft, the Timberwolves selected veteran players like Rick Mahorn, Tyrone Corbin, Steve Johnson, Brad Lohaus and Scott Roth. The team also signed free agents, Tony Campbell, who won an NBA championship with the Los Angeles Lakers in the 1988 NBA Finals, and rookie small forward Sam Mitchell out of Mercer University; Mitchell was drafted by the Houston Rockets as a third-round draft pick in the 1985 NBA draft, but was released to free agency during the preseason, and previously played overseas in France, and in the Continental Basketball Association. Other free agents included Tod Murphy, who previously played overseas in Spain, and Sidney Lowe.

However, Mahorn never played for the Timberwolves due to a contract dispute, and was later on traded to the Philadelphia 76ers. The Timberwolves received the tenth overall pick in the 1989 NBA draft, and selected point guard Pooh Richardson from the University of California, Los Angeles, and also hired Bill Musselman as their first ever head coach.

The Timberwolves made their NBA regular season debut on November 3, 1989, losing to the Seattle SuperSonics on the road, 106–94. Five days later, they made their home debut at the Hubert H. Humphrey Metrodome, losing to the Chicago Bulls, 96–84. Just two nights later, the Timberwolves would get their first win, defeating the 76ers in overtime, 125–118, on November 10. At mid-season, the team traded Lohaus to the Milwaukee Bucks in exchange for former University of Minnesota center, Randy Breuer. The Timberwolves struggled in their inaugural season, posting two nine-game losing streaks, and finishing in sixth place in the Midwest Division with a record of 22 wins and 60 losses.

Campbell led the Timberwolves in scoring, averaging 23.2 points, 5.5 rebounds and 1.4 steals per game, while Corbin averaged 14.7 points, 7.4 rebounds, and 2.1 steals per game, and Mitchell provided the team with 12.7 points and 5.8 rebounds per game, reaching 20 or more points on 14 occasions as a 26 year-old rookie. In addition, Richardson contributed 11.4 points, 6.8 assists, and 1.6 steals per game, and was named to the NBA All-Rookie First Team, while Murphy provided with 8.3 points and 6.9 rebounds per game, and Lowe contributed 2.3 points and 4.2 assists per game, but struggled as he shot just .319 in field-goal percentage. Campbell finished in third place in Most Improved Player voting, while Musselman finished in sixth place in Coach of the Year voting.

The team's primary logo and uniforms would both remain in use until 1996.