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Lakers' LeBron James Sets Unfortunate Playoff History vs Timberwolves

Alex Kirschenbaum|
Apr 19, 2025; Los Angeles, California, USA; Los Angeles Lakers forward LeBron James (23) reacts after missing a pass in the first quarter against the Minnesota Timberwolves at Crypto.com Arena. Mandatory Credit: Jayne Kamin-Oncea-Imagn Images
Apr 19, 2025; Los Angeles, California, USA; Los Angeles Lakers forward LeBron James (23) reacts after missing a pass in the first quarter against the Minnesota Timberwolves at Crypto.com Arena. Mandatory Credit: Jayne Kamin-Oncea-Imagn Images | Jayne Kamin-Oncea-Imagn Images

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Los Angeles Lakers

21-time All-Star Los Angeles Lakers power forward LeBron James is finally showing some signs of rust in the first game of L.A.'s 2025 playoff run.

During the first quarter of the team's first round matchup against the Minnesota Timberwolves, the 6-foot-9 superstar was held scoreless on 0-of-2 shooting from the floor.

It's a disappointing start to what the 50-win Lakers hope will be a long, successful postseason run for James.

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He also failed to record any stats aside from one steal, while playing nearly 10 minutes. Still, he did notch a Lakers-most +11 plus-minus during that first quarter.

Still, five-time All-NBA First Team superstar guard Luka Doncic, who's still just all of 26, helped lead the way for L.A. early, scoring a game-most 16 points on 5-of-10 shooting from the floor (3-of-6 from distance) and 3-of-4 shooting from the foul line.

At the end of the first period, the Lakers led the Timberwolves at home, 28-21.

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James has been shockingly unaggressive for him.

The 40-year-old remains an athletic marvel, and will no doubt get his points in the contest's second half if anything, but for now he is clearly prioritizing defense for now.

For his career, the four-time league MVP and four-time champ boasts career playoff averages of 28.4 points on .497/.332/.741 shooting splits, 9.0 rebounds, 7.2 assists, 1.7 steals and 1.0 blocks across an NBA-record 287 games. He has appeared in 10 total NBA Finals (including eight in a row from the 2010-11 season through 2017-18), and was the Finals MVP in all four of his championship runs.

Still, James has been the league's oldest active player for two years running. Maybe he can't quite summon his peak athletic energy on both sides of the court anymore.

That's why the Lakers have Luka Doncic, however. The 6-foot-6 guard helped his then-Dallas Mavericks storm past the Minnesota Timberwolves in a five-game Western Conference Finals meeting last spring. It's clear that stopping him could be the X-factor of this series, although James has looked absolutely mortal thus far.

More Los Angeles Lakers News: 

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Los Angeles Insider Walks Back Criticism of Bronny James with Honest Admission

Lakers Linked to $100 Million Blazers Star as Summer Trade Target

For the latest Los Angeles Lakers news and notes, stay glued to Los Angeles Lakers On SI.

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Alex Kirschenbaum
ALEX KIRSCHENBAUM

Currently also a scribe for Newsweek, Hoops Rumors, The Sporting News and "Gremlins" director Joe Dante's film site Trailers From Hell, Alex is an alum of Men's Journal, Grizzlies fan site Grizzly Bear Blues, and Bulls fan sites Blog-A-Bull and Pippen Ain't Easy, among others.

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