Lakers’ Star-Focused Basketball Comes Up Short as Timberwolves Win Series 4-1

Sometimes, even the best laid plans go awry.

The Lakers came into the season with plenty of expectations, traded for perhaps the best guard in the NBA, and screamed into the playoffs with a ton of momentum.

Now, they’re going home after the first round.

(Photo by David Sherman/NBAE via Getty Images)

Despite extremely high level play from their superstar duo of Lebron James and Luka Doncic, Los Angeles just didn’t have a well rounded enough team to compete in the postseason.

The Timberwolves were hungrier, younger, and played better basketball when it mattered most

The series ends with Minnesota riding high and the Lakers having to face several serious questions about their future. It’s two teams going in opposite directions, and it all came to a head during a tough, scrappy game five.

Game, Series, Match

The Lakers knew the stakes going into Wednesday’s game. Being down 3-1 is a daunting task for any team, especially a higher seed with lofty aspirations.

Coming back from that deficit was not out of the question for a squad with the Lakers’ talent, but the Timberwolves once again proved they were better in tight contests.

In front of their home crowd and with their backs against the wall, the Lakers came out relatively flat.

They didn’t have any of the momentum or energy to make an early push

The Timberwolves won the first quarter by nine points and were up by 10 at the half. The Lakers did flip the momentum with a strong third quarter, but they once again fell apart down the stretch and lost the fourth quarter by six.

Their inability to close out games is the main reason they lost the series. They had momentum more than a few times, as well as several big quarters, but ultimately couldn’t get the shots when things got tight.

Their lack of a true big also hurt

They had almost no frontcourt presence against the Timberwolves.

Rui Hachimura played a few good games, but the Lakers couldn’t do much against the size of Rudy Gobert, Naz Reid, and Julius Randle. That’s a need they must fill in the offseason.

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A New Coach

It’s hard to know exactly where to put the blame for the Lakers disappointing exit, but a lot of it undoubtedly rests on J.J. Redick.

He coached a strong regular season, utilizing his best players and understanding how to properly build LA’s rotation, but he made some questionable decisions against the Timberwolves.

Most notably, playing everyone too much

The Lakers are a strong team propped up by their best players, but they need to be more than just their best players.

Redick going to a small rotation and running the starters into the ground is something that came back to bite them in the end.

Such decisions are something he can fix next season, but if he sticks with his current plan or repeats the same errors it could be cause for concern.

Right now, he’s undoubtedly a great regular season coach

Another year or two of early exits, and he could be on the hot seat.

It will also be telling to see how he adjusts to next year’s roster. James and Doncic are incredible talents that make coaching easy. It’s the rest of the roster that will show if Redick is ready to take his team to the next level.

More Questions than Answers

Los Angeles is a strong team with a questionable future. They have a good core, a solid coach, and a long term plan. Even so, there is a lot of uncertainty too.

That mainly has to do with LeBron James, who is on the tail end of what has been an incredible career.

While no one expects the forward to retire just yet, it’s unclear just how much time he has left. The trade for Doncic gave the Lakers someone to build around in the coming years.

However, their best chance to win revolves around him playing with James

The duo showed what they can do, and an offseason of working together could really kick their chemistry into high gear. Doncic also has an entire summer to get into better shape, which could help him ascend to another level.

Regardless of what happens, the stars need help. Los Angeles has no depth

They need someone to support their star players without taking too much away. They also need big men who can move around the floor.

Those are big asks, but if one franchise could get them done in the offseason, it’s the Lakers.