How will Timberwolves contain Lakers' Luka Doncic in first-round playoff series?

It was just under a year ago when Luka Doncic sent the Minnesota Timberwolves home in the Western Conference finals.

Doncic's jersey and supporting cast have changed, but the Wolves will have the chance to avenge that defeat when they meet the Los Angeles Lakers in the first round of the West playoffs, beginning with Saturday's Game 1 in Los Angeles.

"Every team's a little bit different. He's still the same amazing player," Wolves coach Chris Finch told reporters when asked about Doncic on Tuesday. "When the ball's in his hands, he controls so much of the game in the way it's played, so we got to do a better job of disrupting that. There's certain things that we learned from being in a series with him last year that we need to put into action this year. Our discipline around him and the execution of those things has to be better. I think last year, we were kind of feeling our way through some of it. And we're going to have to be ready to do a multitude of things."

Doncic had a lot of memorable moments against Minnesota in last year's West finals, from his game-winning stepback 3-pointer over Rudy Gobert to his flurry of 3s early in Game 5 that ultimately sent the Wolves home after a blowout loss. Defending Doncic no doubt will be one of the most important elements of the series, and Finch expects to throw a variety of different looks at him and his new partner in crime, LeBron James. It'll take a team effort to contain the Lakers star duo.

"I think he might be the best player at making tough shots in the league," Anthony Edwards told reporters Wednesday when asked about Doncic. "Just trying to make it tough on him. He done seen every coverage, he been in every situation, so there's nothing he's not used to, but just try to make it tough on him."

Jaden McDaniels was the primary defender on Doncic to start the West finals last season, but later on, Edwards and McDaniels switched assignments, putting Edwards on Doncic and McDaniels on Kyrie Irving. Both players are likely to guard Doncic again. Julius Randle seems likely to draw the James matchup, though Edwards could see time there, too. The Wolves also have flexibility to play lineups that switch everything. Minnesota is certain to use several different looks.

"The league is so switch-heavy at the moment, the more that you can do that, the better it is in game planning," Finch told reporters Wednesday. "But you still have to be able to sit down and win that matchup. ... These guys have just so much game and ability to create for their teammates. That's one of the things: It's not just about stopping them. They have so much game to be able to help their teammates ... you can't just commit to running around multiple guys at the ball because now you're giving maybe the best player in the game to ever have played the chance to pick you apart in space."

Finch also noted the importance of being more active in transition defense, which has been a weakness, at times, for the Wolves this season as a team on the slower side. The goal is ultimately to make Doncic and James work for everything. Schematically, Minnesota is adding sets, but leaning into what it's excelled at this year without changing its identity.

"I'm a big believer in don't create a problem when there's not a problem," Finch said. "... Certainly, you gotta be ready to adjust. There's a million ideas — everybody's got a thousand ideas of what to do at this time. I just need to go to Twitter and I'm a better coach. Once things get a little rocky in the season, I'll probably just do that. But yeah, it's about, it's not just about having all these ideas, it's about what can you actually accomplish at a high level?"

Whether he's guarding Doncic, James, Austin Reaves or someone else, Edwards learned where he needs to be better from last year's postseason: defending off the ball. It also motivated Edwards to get into even better shape. Chasing around Irving for the beginning of the West finals wore him down, and any breakdowns led to buckets for the Mavericks. He's confident it will be different this go-around. He said he wasn't ready for Dallas. He is, however, ready for the Lakers.

"I gotta be locked in off the ball because I know they may try to attack me when I'm not on the ball, so I gotta be locked in on cutters and stuff," Edwards said. "On the ball, I'm not really worried, I'm gonna play pretty good defense. I just gotta be willing to compete, and that comes with being in shape, and these last couple days, I've been trying to push myself a little bit more so I can be in the best shape and be ready to play both sides."

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