Hollywood meltdown. Is the LeBron era a one-hit wonder?
Rudy Gobert did his best Moses Malone impression and had the best game of his life and had playoff career highs with 27 points and 24 rebounds, Julius Randle added 23 points, and the Minnesota Timberwolves advanced in the NBA playoffs with a 103-96 victory over the Los Angeles Lakers in Game 5 of their first-round series Wednesday night.
Anthony Edwards had an off-shooting night, 5-19 from the field, but he did not let that effect the other parts of his game, putting up 15 points and 11 rebounds for the sixth-seeded Timberwolves, who won three straight games to eliminate LeBron James and Luka Doncic from their first postseason together.
After winning a playoff round in back-to-back seasons for the first time in franchise history, which dates back to 1989, Minnesota next faces the winner of Houston, Golden State series. The Rockets avoided elimination Wednesday, and Game 6 is set for Friday with the Warriors leading 3-2.
“We didn’t shoot the ball well, but I thought we were the tougher team mentally and physically,” Minnesota coach Chris Finch said. “That’s when it showed itself. We knew we’d been good in fourth quarters against this team all series. We just needed to see a couple of shots go down opportunistically. Guys did a great job surviving the emotions of the game, which was always going to be a tough game.”
Doncic had 28 points and nine assists, but did not show up on the defensive end, while James added 22 points for the Lakers, who lost in the first round for the second straight postseason despite reshaping their roster at midseason with their shocking acquisition of Doncic.
Rui Hachimura scored 23 points for the Lakers, who have advanced from the opening round just once in five seasons since their 2020 championship in the Orlando bubble.
“There’s always a mix of disappointment and gratitude,” Lakers coach JJ Redick said. “Certainly disappointed (because this result is) not something that I ever envisioned with this team, having to go in and talk to them after losing in the first round, but give Minnesota a lot of credit. They’re a really good basketball team, and I think our guys played hard enough and did all the right things.
Embed from Getty Images“We tried to make it work with what we had and came up a little short.”
With the ‘Stifle Tower’ Gobert running amok in the paint while the Lakers intentionally played small ball without the threat of a center, Minnesota won Game 5 despite going 7 for 47 from 3-point range, including 18 consecutive misses between the middle of the second quarter and Mike Conley’s dagger 3 with 1:22 to play.
After splitting the first two games in Los Angeles, the Timberwolves seized control of the series in back-to-back narrow home victories at the Target Center with superior late-game execution.
Gobert then stepped up to the plate when the Lakers trotted out a miniature lineup for Game 5, with the French center scoring more points than he managed in the series’ first four games combined.
“Feels great, but not vindication,” Gobert said. “It’s not about beating a specific person. It’s about a championship, and we’ve got a little bit more work to do before that.”
Minnesota nursed a narrow lead down the stretch, and the Lakers came up empty, missing five consecutive shots while having a 3 ½ minute dry spell between points.
After playing the entire second half of Game 4 with five players on Sunday, the Lakers changed their starting lineup for Game 5, keeping tenacious wing Dorian Finney-Smith in place of center Jaxson Hayes.
Lakers coach Redick defended his head-scratching decision to bypass substitutions this week, even reacting combatively when a reporter asked him about his decision process prior to the tipoff of Game 5.
Minnesota jumped to a 14-point lead in the first quarter, but the Lakers rallied before Doncic went to the locker room one minute before halftime after landing awkwardly on his knees due to a hard foul by Donte DiVincenzo. Doncic returned to the court moments before the third quarter began, wearing a large lower back brace that he took off to continue playing.
The Wolves’ inaccurate shooting kept it close, and the Lakers took their first lead when Doncic spearheaded a rally late in the third.
James limped to the Lakers’ bench during the fourth quarter after going down hard on his balky ankle but returned a few possessions later.
