Lakers Final Score: Superstars, Dennis Schröder Power LA To Overtime Play-In Win
Well, that wasn't quite the cakewalk most of us were expecting.
Your Los Angeles Lakers did eventually beat a Minnesota Timberwolves club missing two starters and one of its best bench players, but they needed a bonus period to secure the West's seventh seed and a first round playoff matchup against the second-seeded Memphis Grizzlies on Sunday.
Future Hall of Famers LeBron James and Anthony Davis predictably led the way, and a high-flying LA point guard stepped up when Los Angeles needed him most... but it wasn't quite the guy most of us anticipated. D'Angelo Russell made LA fans second-guess whether or not Los Angeles grabbed the right Ohio State alum in its three-team Russell Westbrook deal with Minnesota and the Utah Jazz, as battle-tested Wolves point guard Mike Conley had a huge night. Dennis Schröder, fortunately, made money moves for the Lakers in D-Lo's stead.
The Lakers got off to a strong start, but the Timberwolves' two available studs, All-Star shooting guard Anthony Edwards and center Karl-Anthony Towns, got cooking early. Edwards enjoyed a monstrous defensive night, starting with a brutal rejection of a Rui Hachimura attempt at a buzzer-beating dunk. At the end of the first quarter, Minnesota led 28-22.
Early in the second quarter, the Timberwolves outscored Los Angeles 14-9 to build up a 42-31 edge. A 14-2 Lakers run got the club right back back into the game, keyed by a lot of excellent scoring and playmaking courtesy of James, and some terrific defense from AD.
The Timberwolves subsequently responded with their own 14-2 run, closing out the first half with a 60-49 lead.
LA's two big issues in the first half were a bit disconcerting. Starting LA point guard D'Angelo Russell was a complete no-show early, and the Lakers didn't even seem interested in defending the three-point line. One of those problems would be corrected in the second half.
After Minnesota led by as many as 15 points in the contest's third quarter, the Lakers outscored Minnesota 14-6 to end the frame trailing by by single digits, 86-79.
Everything fell apart for the Timberwolves in the fourth quarter. Mike Conley made a triple at the six-minute mark of the frame... and then the Timberwolves failed to make another field the rest of the way, at one point going scoreless for five consecutive minutes.
LeBron James, feeling lucky, capped off a 16-9 Lakers run with a three.
The score was knotted at 95-95 for 2:01 of the game's final 2:02... until this LeBron James drive-and-kick to Dennis Schröder seemingly iced the contest with 1.4 seconds remaining in regulation.
Unfortunately, you play until the buzzer sounds. In a mismatch for the ages, 6'10" LA center Anthony Davis aggressively fouled 6'1" Timberwolves point guard Mike Conley on a three-point corner try with 0.1 seconds left!
This sent Conley to the line, where he nailed all three of his free throws. It was Minnesota's first time at the charity stripe in the entire second half.
Conley scored nine of the Timberwolves' pathetic 12 total points in the game's fourth quarter. The two clubs were headed to overtime after a 98-98 finish.
In the extra period, Schröder and Davis helped bring LA home. Karl-Anthony Towns, who had enjoyed a solid first half but fell apart after getting into foul trouble in the second and overtime, struggled to be assertive late in demanding the ball, even when guards like Austin Reaves and Dennis Schröder were covering him.
Now boasting all the momentum in the world, LA got off to a 7-2 start to the frame, leaning a bit on some classic James-to-Davis two-man actions:
Edwards, who generally had a terrible offensive night (he shot 3-of-17 from the floor) but a terrific defensive evening, cut the Lakers' lead to three, 105-102, when he sliced into the paint for a cutting lay-up.
Leading by just a possession with 19 seconds remaining in the first overtime, one would think the Lakers would buckle down and play in control. Instead, a terrible LeBron James inbounds attempt to D'Angelo Russell was picked off, giving Minnesota an extra chance to score.
Luckily for the Lakers, Timberwolves swingman Taurean Prince missed an attempt to tie the contest with 12.1 seconds remaining off a botched corner triple. LA shooting guard Austin Reaves rebounded the rock and was quickly fouled. The Lakers played the free throw game while counting down the contest's final seconds.
LA ultimately won a low-scoring affair, 108-102.
For the 19th time this season, the Timberwolves blew a double-digit lead to lose a game. They'll have another chance to make the postseason, however, and given how they played for the contest's first three quarters, the winner of the 9-10 matchup between the New Orleans Pelicans and Oklahoma City Thunder should watch out.
James and Davis each finished with double-doubles. James scored 30 points on 12-of-21 shooting (3-of-6 from long range), pulled down 10 boards, and passed for six dimes (against five turnovers). His solid stat line must be tempered by the reality that, later in the game as he got tired (he played 45:18!), the 38-year-old vet often settled for jumpers early in possessions and took frequent breaks on defense. In 42:40, Davis notched 24 points on 10-of-19 shooting from the field, 15 rebounds, four assists and three blocks. Schröder was LA's third-most important player of the night, scoring 21 points on 5-of-12 shooting (including 3-of-4 from deep) and 8-of-8 shooting from the charity stripe. The 6'2" point guard also passed for two assists and chipped in some dogged defense.
D-Lo had a brutal night on both ends of the hardwood, scoring just two points on 1-of-9 shooting from the floor, though he did at least pass for eight dimes. Power forward Jarred Vanderbilt was LA's other underwhelming new starter, notching a disappointing zero points on 0-of-2 shooting and a -12 plus-minus. Like Schröder at the point, combo forward Rui Hachimura took on some of the scoring burden vacated by Vanderbilt, scoring 12 points on 3-of-8 shooting from the floor (2-of-5 from deep) and 4-of-4 shooting from the charity stripe. Austin Reaves was LA's other double-digit scorer, with 12 points.
For the Timberwolves, Towns finally showed up, scoring 24 points, grabbing 11 rebounds, passing for five assists and blocking three shots. Conley had a terrific night, scoring 23 points on 7-of-11 shooting from the floor (6-of-8 from deep) and 3-of-3 free throw shooting, plus passing for four assists. Kyle Anderson, Rudy Gobert's nemesis, had a 12-point, 13-assist double-double of his own upon being promoted to a starting gig.
Make no mistake, this win kind of exposed the Lakers. The team's two best players can get tired late, making costly errors they otherwise might not as the game wears them down (James' botched inbounds pass and frequent defense lapses, Davis' absentminded foul on Conley). Los Angeles also struggled to maintain defensive pressure, especially along the perimeter, for a full 48 minutes, though in this case the defense more or less kicked into gear after the first half. The Lakers' minimal three-point shooting, an issue that we had hoped would be corrected following a flurry of trades, was underwhelming tonight. LA went 10-of-31 from long range, while Minnesota shot 16-of-41 (an 18-point difference). Most troublingly, it's now unclear if the club can really lean on its starting point guard, an unrestricted free agent, in big postseason moments moving forward.
As anticipated, the Lakers enjoyed edges in rebounding (55-49), points scored in the paint (a 54-36 advantage -- LA went 21-for-31 at the rim!), and of course free throws at home. LA shot a sparkling 22-of-24 from the foul line, while Minnesota went 14-of-15.
It will be fascinating to see how or if Los Angeles head coach Darvin Ham adjusts his playoff rotation ahead of his team's next adversary, another young, athletic, fearless team in the Memphis Grizzlies. Ham opted to essentially trot out an eight-man rotation against Minnesota, with Schroder, Hachimura, and Malik Beasley getting meaningful time off the bench, even in a 53-minute game (reserve center Wenyen Gabriel played just 1:47). Will backups Mo Bamba, Lonnie Walker IV or Max Christie, all of whom were DNP - CDs tonight, get some meaningful run against the Grizz? Will Ham explore the point-of-attack defense new Lakers guard Shaquille Harrison could offer? We'll find out.
Are you following us on Twitter, Facebook, or YouTube yet? Join the conversation as we discuss the latest Lakers news and rumors with fans like you!
