The Los Angeles Lakers lost Game 1 against the Minnesota Timberwolves by a wide margin. After the game, the Lakers noted that the visitors’ physical style of play had caused them problems.
This was certainly not how the Lakers had imagined their playoff opener. The Californians lost 95-117 and were at times outplayed by the Timberwolves. Between the start of the second quarter and the middle of the third, the Wolves scored more than twice as many points as the hosts (33-67).
“I don’t think we were physically ready,” speculated Lakers coach J.J. Redick. ‘When Minnesota played more physically in the second quarter, we didn’t respond,’ said the rookie coach, annoyed. Top scorer Luka Doncic (37 points) said that the team had let itself go.
LeBron James, meanwhile, was not worried, as the 40-year-old has had several slow starts to the playoffs with his teams in the past. “Maybe we needed this game to get a feel for the intensity. We’ll be better prepared on Tuesday,” said James, who only scored 19 points himself.
Doncic plays only one assist
The only player who was able to consistently create offense was Doncic – but only for himself. In addition to his 37 points, he recorded just one assist, which was not enough for the Slovenian’s standards. At the same time, the Wolves often played on the edge of legality, but the referees let a lot go.
“They should feel us, but we definitely wanted to prevent them from getting into the bonus quickly,” Anthony Edwards revealed. This worked quite well, with the Lakers only taking 16 free throws and shooting under 40 percent from the field. The hosts lacked answers, and even small ball in the second half did not bring the desired results.
Starting center Jaxson Hayes played only eight minutes, but his night was over after two minutes in the second half. The Lakers scored just 32 points in the paint, while the Wolves hit a franchise record 21 three-pointers. It won’t continue like this, but the Lakers are already under pressure early on, even if Doncic didn’t want to hear about it. “I would have liked to win my first game here, but it’s not about a single game, it’s about who wins four in a row first.”
