Well, that was a rough way to begin a postseason. The Los Angeles Lakers got annihilated on their homecourt by the Minnesota Timberwolves. It was a disappointing 117-95 loss to tip-off the series.
Things looked pretty good after the first quarter. The Lakers held a solid 28-21 lead and Luka Doncic had gotten off to a fast start in the quarter, scoring 16 points, while shooting 5-of-10 from the field and 3-of-6 from beyond the arc. What followed was a nightmarish second frame.
The Timberwolves absolutely took it to the Lakers in the second quarter, outscoring Los Angeles 38-20. They would continue that success in the second half. There were times when the Lakers showed fight as the game progressed, but ultimately, the effort fell well short of what was needed to truly inspire a comeback.
There are numerous things that the Lakers need to improve upon leading into Game 2. However, there is one key adjustment that should serve the team well heading into a contest where a win will be in high demand.
Approach to guarding Anthony Edwards will need tweaking
The question of how to guard an elite player is never an easy one to answer. The approach on Saturday night clearly did not work.
Anthony Edwards finished the game with 22 points, shooting 8-of-22 from the field. The Timberwolves superstar may not have experienced an efficient night shooting the ball. However, Edwards found a different way to control the ball game. The maturing franchise player did it with his passing.
Edwards finished the game against the Lakers with nine assists. That mark was comfortably a game-high amongst either team. The three-time All-Star led a strong night of ball movement for the Timberwolves that saw them finish the game with 29 assists.
That strong passing display from Edwards and his teammates resulted in a lot of easy looks for Minnesota, particularly from corner 3s. Overall, the Timberwolves finished the ball-game shooting 50 percent from beyond the arc, knocking down 21-of-41 attempts from triple.
The Lakers will need to turn Edwards into a scorer for Game 2, limiting how much the multi-talented superstar can help elevate those around him.
It can be dangerous to have that thought with a sensational scorer like the Timberwolves guard. However, one can look at Doncic as a prime example of how that can be an effective strategy.
In his playoff debut for the Lakers, Luka scored 37 points on an efficient 12-22 shooting from the field. However, Doncic only had one assist in the contest. The final score of this game speaks for itself.
The Lakers will not play again until 7PM PT/10 PM ET on Tuesday night. JJ Redick will have plenty of opportunity to weigh what the best approach is. One way or another, it will have to be different than what everyone witnessed tonight.