3 Keys to the Lakers defeating the Timberwolves in 2024-25 regular season opener

The day has finally arrived! After months of anticipation, the Los Angeles Lakers will officially begin the 2024-25 NBA regular season by hosting the Minnesota Timberwolves in what could be an early leg in the race for Defensive Player of the Year.

As Los Angeles looks to kick the regular season off with a home victory, it's faced with the daunting task of overcoming a 2024 Western Conference Finalist.

In 2023-24, the Timberwolves won the regular season series with the Lakers by a margin of 3-1. Los Angeles managed to win one of the two games it played after changing to its current starting lineup, however, which offers some degree of optimism.

True as that may be, that was a different time for both teams—as both Los Angeles and Minnesota are preparing to usher in a new era in their respective franchise's history.

The Lakers began the offseason by making the change from Darvin Ham to first-year head coach JJ Redick. Not to be outdone, the Timberwolves parted with former franchise player Karl-Anthony Towns after nine seasons.

The question is: What must the Lakers do to be the new-look team that begins their new chapter with a victory?

3. Run Minnesota Off The Three-Point Line—Kind Of

The Lakers faced the Timberwolves four times in 2023-24—and three of those four games played out in a recognizable fashion. Minnesota turned to its shooters to overwhelm Los Angeles' questionable perimeter defense, and they consistently came up big.

If the Lakers hope to defeat the Timberwolves in the 2024-25 regular-season opener, they'll need to be able to run the opposition off the three-point line—with a key exception, of course.

Minnesota averaged 13.7 three-point field goals made during its three wins over Los Angeles in 2023-24. During the one game that the Lakers won, they held the opposition to 10 three-point field goals made—a difference of 11.1 points per game via the three-point shot.

It should come as no surprise that the game during which the Timberwolves made their fewest threes against the Lakers was played without Towns.

As Minnesota enters its first season without Towns since 2014-15, the Lakers must exploit his absence. Julius Randle is an All-NBA player, but he's also an erratic jump shooter—meaning Redick and company shouldn't be afraid to make him play the Towns role.

Other than testing Randle's range and efficiency, however, the Lakers must be aware of how big of a difference the three-point shot has made in this rivalry.

2. Contain Anthony Edwards

The most obvious task that the Lakers must accomplish is preventing Timberwolves superstar Anthony Edwards from going off. Edwards will be looking to exploit whichever matchups the Lakers send his way, with Austin Reaves' past defensive inconsistency likely to be a focal point for Chris Finch's team.

It'll take a team effort and consistently high energy from Reaves to get the job done, but if the Lakers can contain Edwards, they'll have a chance to win.

Edwards is going to produce big numbers and there's nothing Los Angeles can do about that. It's the nature of the beast whenever the opposition is an All-NBA level player, let alone one who's already made a deep playoff run at 23 years of age.

The Lakers may be able to prevent Edwards from truly taking over, however, which will be essential to the team's effort to secure an opening-night victory.

It's also worth noting that the Lakers' lone win over the Timberwolves in 2023-24 saw Edwards shoot 10-of-23 from the field and 2-of-9 from beyond the arc. Edwards is an effective three-point shooter, but perhaps limiting his opportunities to drive and turning him into more of a jump shooter is the answer.

LeBron James will shoulder a heavy offensive load, but this is one of the big games during which the Lakers will need him to play his somehow-still-strong brand of situational defense.

1. Anthony Davis vs. Rudy Gobert

In a clash between two of the best big men in the NBA, Anthony Davis will go up against four-time and reigning Defensive Player of the Year Rudy Gobert. It's an encounter that will be essential to determining the outcome of the game.

Some might misguideddly point to Gobert's defense as the only area in which he could harm the Lakers, but his offensive rebounding could prove just as devastating.

In 2023-24, Gobert ranked No. 2 in the NBA in offensive rebounds per game at 3.8. That's bad news for Los Angeles, which finished at No. 27 in second-chance points allowed—and there really isn't anyone beyond Davis to help in that regard.

Davis will need to turn in a strong offensive performance, as well, but limiting the number of second chances that Gobert creates will be essential if Los Angeles hopes to move to 1-0.

On the offensive end of the floor, Davis will be giving the NBA its first look at his new role as the hub of the Lakers' offense. For what it's worth: During Los Angeles' only win over Minnesota last season, Davis tallied 27 points, 10 offensive rebounds, and five assists.

It's unlikely that he'll reproduce those numbers, but it's clear that Davis' versatility on offense is the greatest form of kryptonite the Lakers have for the Timberwolves' No. 1 ranked defense.