Andrew Bynum vowed that he will be uniform this season, but the Philadelphia 76ers will not be counting on seeing the behemoth center anytime soon as they prepare to visit the Minnesota Timberwolves on Wednesday. Bynum, acquired in a four-team blockbuster deal in the offseason, has yet to take the court for the Sixers, who are struggling to stay within striking distance of the final playoff spot in the Eastern Conference. Philadelphia has dropped two straight and three of four and trails eighth-place Milwaukee by 3 1/2 games.The Timberwolves certainly have no sympathy for the plight of Philadelphia and Bynum. Minnesota has been hit harder by injuries than any team in the league. Kevin Love was the biggest injury casualty for the Timberwolves, who have dropped 17 of 21 games since their All-Star forward broke his hand for a second time this season. Minnesota has lost 16 of its last 19 overall but will be receiving at least one reinforcement with the expected return of forward Andrei Kirilenko, who said he will play Wednesday after missing five games with a quadriceps injury.TV: 8 p.m. ET, Comcast SportsNet Philadelphia, Fox Sports North (Minnesota)ABOUT THE 76ERS (22-29): If Philadelphia is to have any hope of overtaking Milwaukee, it must see a marked improvement in its play away from home. The Sixers are tied for the second-fewest road wins (6-16) in the Eastern Conference and have dropped six straight road games. A two-point loss at Milwaukee prior to the All-Star break represented a huge two-game swing in the standings. Aside from Bynum, Philadelphia has lost guard Jason Richardson (knee) for the season and will be without second-leading scorer Thaddeus Young (hamstring) for a fifth straight game.ABOUT THE TIMBERWOLVES (19-31): Minnesota has been besieged by injuries, but point guard Ricky Rubio appears to be returning to the level he showed before suffering a season-ending knee injury last March. Rubio, who missed the first six weeks of the season, showed a dramatic improvement in the final six games leading up to the All-Star break. The second-year Spaniard averaged 15 points during that stretch and handed out at least 10 assists in five of those games. BUZZER BEATERS1. Minnesota is shooting a league-worst 30.1 percent on 3-point attempts but knocked down 13 of 25 in a 105-88 romp at Philadelphia on Dec. 4. 2. Sixers F Evan Turner averaged 15.3 points in his past three games. 3. Timberwolves G Luke Ridnour is averaging 19 points in his last four.PREDICTION: Timberwolves 95, 76ers 92.