The Los Angeles Lakers take on the Minnesota Timberwolves in the NBA Play-In Tournament. If the Lakers win, they will advance to the NBA Playoffs as the seventh seed in the Western Conference. If they lose, they will have one more shot at the playoffs against the winner of the New Orleans Pelicans-Oklahoma City Thunder game.
This is a compelling matchup between two teams who have had up-and-down seasons thus far. Minnesota seems to have the advantage in the season series but also has its own problems going on with Rudy Gobert.
Some players on the Lakers are built for this specific matchup and are going to have to pick up for those that might struggle a bit more.
2 Lakers that will thrive in play-in vs Timberwolves and 1 that will struggle:
Will thrive for the Lakers: Jarred Vanderbilt
Jarred Vanderbilt has quickly become a fan favorite for the Los Angeles Lakers and it is not hard to see why. Vanderbilt plays the right way, giving 100% effort on every single play and playing hard-nosed defense as a result.
Vanderbilt has his flaws offensively but Minnesota is not a team that is going to be able to capitalize on that much on defense. Meanwhile, Vanderbilt’s defense is going to be one of the most important facets of the Lakers’ game.
Getting Karl-Anthony Towns going and utilizing his floor-spacing is a critical aspect of Minnesota’s success. If the Lakers can minimize that portion of Minnesota’s game then it is going to be really hard for the T-Wolves to get their offense going.
Vanderbilt is going to be the key in this regard as his defense both on the block and the perimeter is not only hugely important but matches up nicely against his former team.