The Los Angeles Lakers were embarrassed by their field to start the NBA qualifiers on Saturday evening, while the Minnesota Timberwolves beat them 117-95 in a match where the starters did not even need to stay on the ground throughout the fourth quarter.
The Lakers are seeded n ° 3 of the Western Conference to start these playoffs, but the Timberwolves had their way on the offensive to have them the only defeat at home during the opening evening of the playoffs.
The bad performance led a legend of the Lakers to try to light a fire under his old team.
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Minnesota Timberwolves goalkeeper Anthony Edwards passes in front of the Los Angeles Austin Reaves Lakers goalkeeper in Crypto.com Arena. (Images Jayne Kamin-Ocea-Imagn)
“Tonight was one of the worst Lakers performances this season,” Magic Johnson wrote on X. “They were flat, had no energy, and they played as if it was a regular season match.”
Johnson was not finished there because he also pointed to the head coach JJ Redick.
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“Coach JJ Redick did a great job all season, but he didn’t do a good job for match 1,” said Johnson. “The Lakers stood in attack, played too much basketball in-head, and he made no necessary adjustment.”
If adjustments were made, they did not work against the offensive attack of Minnesota, which pulled 51.2% of the team field and 50% beyond the arc.
The Timberwolves were raining three, going 21 for 42 with the great Naz man Reid with a hot hand, buried six of his nine attempts by three points.
Minnesota Timberwolves goalkeeper Anthony Edwards passes in front of the Los Angeles Rui Hachimura striker in Crypto.com Arena. (Images Jayne Kamin-Ocea-Imagn)
Anthony Edwards, who was about to score a triple-double with 22 points, nine assists and eight rebounds, also struck four three despite a fragile outing (shooting 8 for 22). Jaden McDaniels was very effective with a summit of 25 points on a shot of 11 for 13 with nine rebounds.
Meanwhile, the Lakers had trouble throughout the match, pulling 39.8% on the field. Luka Donteic was the exception, going 12 for 22 on the field and 5 for 10 of three, for a summit of 37 points. LeBron James was 8 for 18, while Austin Reaves was only 5 for 13.
Los Angeles led after the first quarter, but the Timberwolves became hot in the second and never looked back. At the end of the match, the starters of the two teams rested, the Minnesota putting it out of reach.
James spoke after the match, where he recognized the offensive power of the Timberwolves.
Magic Johnson speaks during a ceremony celebrating the enthronement of Michael Cooper at the temple of basketball renowned at halftime of a match between the Lakers and the Denver Nuggets in Crypto.com Arena on April 25, 2024 in Los Angeles. (Allen Berezovsky / Getty Images)
“They will be physical,” he said. “This is what they bring to the table. We needed a match … (to) understand this. They took advantage of us this evening, but we have to control the controllables, and if we do it, we will have a much better chance of winning than this evening.”
The Lakers and Timberwolves are back in action on Tuesday for match 2 of their first round match.
