Timberwolves Rout Lakers in Game1 of Playoffs

The NBA Playoffs officially got underway with a scorching four-game slate on Saturday.

In the nightcap, the Los Angeles Lakers flopped at the box office and succumbed to an unexpected defeat in front of their home fans, losing 117-95 to the Minnesota Timberwolves in Game 1 of their Western Conference best-of-seven series.

“It means Game 1,” Minnesota coach Chris Finch said. “We know it’s going to be a long series. We’re not under any assumption that it’s going to be this type of game in Game 2. It’ll be a completely different game. We got a lot left. A lot of meat on the bone out there. A lot of things. I know we can do better.”

The Lakers mercifully got to halftime on their heels, trailing by eleven, 59-48, and things certainly did not improve from that point, as the Timberwolves raced out with an 11-0 run in the third quarter and the lead ballooned to 22. Anthony Edwards, who filled up the stat sheet, with 22 points, eight rebounds and nine assists, torched the Lakers with a 3-pointer that extended the lead to 27 points with just over five minutes to go in the quarter.

“I got a great group of guys,” Edwards said. “But it wasn’t tonight. I learned that in training camp. It just takes a minute for us to gel as a new team. It just took a minute for us to figure each other out, and I feel like now we just go.”

But the Lakers, energized by their new superstar Luka Doncic who the acquired from the Dallas Mavericks, refused to go quietly. A 13-3 run clawed them back into the prize fight, and Doncic sent the crowd at Crypto.Com Arena into a roar, nailing a halfcourt buzzer-beater at the end of the third to cut the deficit to 16, 94-78.

The Timberwolves weathered the Lakers storm, responding with a 12-2 run of their own in the fourth quarter to squash any hopes of a comeback.

Jaden McDaniels, who is known for his lock-down defense, showed off his scoring ability, leading the Timberwolves’ charge with 25 points and nine rebounds, while Julius Randle added 16 points. The Timberwolves knocked down a franchise playoff-record 21 3-pointers.

For the Lakers, Doncic finished with eight rebounds and a game-high 37 points, tying George Mikan for the second-highest scoring output in a Laker playoff debut. LeBron James contributed 19 points in the loss to begin his 18th NBA postseason run and also had a memorable block similar to the one in the 2016 Finals against the Golden State Warriors, but the third-seeded Lakers were overmatched and out coached by the Timberwolves’ shot-making and playoff poise.

“This Minnesota team, they’re going to be physical,” James said.

“That’s what they bring to the table. It took us one game … (to) understand that. They took homecourt advantage from us tonight, but we have to control the controllables, and if we do that, we’ll have a much better chance to win than we did tonight.”

“I’m not sure physically we were ready, if that makes sense,” said Lakers coach JJ Redick. “And really, when they started playing with a lot of thrust and physicality, we just didn’t respond immediately to that, and then that stretch from the start of the second through four, five minutes to go in the third.

“We lost that stretch by 34, so that’s a blowout.”

Both teams will return to the court at Crypto.Com Arena for Game 2 on Tuesday, April 22.