Lakers rely on defensive dominance to bounce back against Timberwolves

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LOS ANGELES — LeBron James, as he has done countless times in his career, saw an opening in transition defensively and darted toward the ball.

He wasn’t sure if he could catch the hyper-quick Anthony Edwards, but he wanted to at least try to make him adjust his dribble.

As Edwards tried to dribble behind his back, the streaking James caught him, with one of his patented chasedown blocks replaced by a chasedown steal at a pivotal moment. James galloped back the other way, powering past Nickeil Alexander-Walker and Naz Reid for a layup for two of the Los Angeles Lakers’ 13 fourth-quarter points.

The clutch basket pushed the Lakers’ lead back to double-digits — 92-81 — with 2:40 left. That was all the cushion they needed to win a Game 2 rock fight, 94-85, tying their best-of-seven first-round series with the Minnesota Timberwolves at 1-1.

“It wasn’t about the points at that point. It was about the momentum,” James said of his steal and basket. “That type of steal, that type of play, to be able to finish in that moment, because they could’ve cut it to six, or a four-point play, they could’ve cut it to five. So, for us to push it back to a double-digit lead at that point with a little over two minutes, I think that was very key.”

LEBRON BIG STEAL & BUCKET LATE IN THE 4TH 👑 pic.twitter.com/huetkc1scX

— NBA (@NBA) April 23, 2025

For as well as they played for most of Game 2, the Lakers actually scored one fewer point than they did in Game 1. Their offense ground to a halt and barely crossed the finish line in the second half. But their defense, which set the tone early and often, enjoyed a 32-point swing from Game 1 to Game 2. They held the Wolves to a season-low 85 points — eight fewer than Minnesota’s previous low of 93.

After a disastrous Game 1 performance on both ends of the floor, the Lakers were much sharper and jumped out to a 34-15 lead after the first quarter. They were physical defensively, pressuring the ball, actively switching and forcing Minnesota to catch passes a step or two farther than intended. They were aggressive in their helping and shading Edwards toward certain spots on the floor, executing their game plan to great effect. Edwards had nine assists and one turnover in Game 1. He had zero assists and two turnovers in Game 2. That completely changed the complexion of the Wolves’ offense.

Minnesota couldn’t find a rhythm. The Wolves were never comfortable. Every time they drove, there were multiple Lakers defenders. Any time a shot went up, multiple Lakers were crashing the glass, enveloping Rudy Gobert, Reid and Julius Randle.

There was no grand adjustment. The Lakers just played harder.

“We did the same game plan,” Luka Dončić said. “We didn’t really change much. It was just a question of if we were gonna be more physical or not. And I think we showed that. And we were there for 48 minutes.”

Several other numbers stood out defensively. The Lakers limited the Wolves’ transition game, allowing just six fast-break points after giving up 25 in Game 1. Minnesota shot 5-of-25 (20 percent) on 3-pointers after going 21-of-42 (50 percent) in Game 1. The number of attempts was arguably as impressive as the number of makes — the Lakers prevented the Wolves from even attempting 3s by playing passing lanes better and running them off the 3-point line.

The game turned into hand-to-hand combat for stretches, with the Lakers matching the Wolves’ grabbing and pushing and holding. They dictated the terms of engagement far more often than they did in Game 1, seeking out confrontation.

“We were physical,” coach JJ Redick said. “The playoffs require a different level.”

At the same time, the Lakers had some lulls in focus and execution, especially in the second half. As Minnesota went on one of several runs in the middle of the third quarter, Redick lit into his team in an expletive-laden, stomp-heavy timeout.

He later said that he wasn’t happy with the team’s demeanor and intensity during that moment, and he wanted to remind them of their first-half performance. The Lakers immediately responded with a 9-0 run, stretching the lead from 11 back to 20 and giving themselves some breathing room entering the fourth quarter.

“It’s not something that I want to do,” Redick said. “But it’s something I’m more than comfortable doing. I think tonight it was just more about getting that urgency button switched back on.”

The primary concern through the first two games, aside from Minnesota stealing home-court advantage, is the offensive end. Only Dončić (31 points, 12 rebounds and nine assists in Game 2) has looked like himself. James (21 points, 12 rebounds and seven assists) and Austin Reaves (16 points, five rebounds and five assists) were better in Game 2 than in Game 1, but neither star has played at the top of his game yet.

The supporting cast of Rui Hachimura, Dorian Finney-Smith and Gabe Vincent has struggled to make jumpers. Jaxson Hayes played nine minutes because of foul trouble and questionable decisions. Jarred Vanderbilt and Jordan Goodwin are being used sparingly.

The offense stagnated in the second half, a bad Lakers’ habit when they’re up by a significant number of points. They can play late into the shot clock and become too isolation-heavy. Had the Wolves been playing better offensively — or LA’s defense been worse — this could’ve turned into more of a game in the fourth quarter.

“We could still be better offensively,” James said. “I thought at times we were very sharp. But at times, we weren’t. I think we could do a better job on the offensive end, but we’re going to continue to get better, continue to watch the film, see ways we can kinda break down the defense and continue to get good looks. I thought we had some great looks tonight. I know a lot of my shots in the fourth quarter were great looks that just didn’t go. If we can continue to get great looks like that, I think we believe in our percentages. But we gotta continue to work the habits.”

The Wolves will be better back in Minnesota. They will have counters to LA’s base game plan vs. Edwards. They will play with even more physicality and confidence at home. The Lakers have lost four straight and seven of eight in Minnesota in the regular season. It’s been a house of horrors for them, at times. They need to expect Minnesota’s best haymakers this weekend.

The Lakers’ offense has to be better, with James and Reaves having the most room for improvement. They need to remain organized, run sets, space properly and screen and cut hard. Their style of defense tends to sap their legs, leading to wonky shooting performances for some of the supporting cast.

But if they can defend like they did in Game 2 for the rest of the series — a level they flashed for over a quarter of the season pre- and post-Dončić trade — they should advance to the Western Conference semifinals.

“When we play this kind of defense for 48 minutes, it gives us a really good chance to win,” Dončić said.

(Photo of Jordan Goodwin, Dorian Finney-Smith and Luka Dončić defending Anthony Edwards: Kiyoshi Mio / Imagn Images)

This news was originally published on this post .

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