The Los Angeles Lakers are closing out 2023 with a quick two-game road trip, and that trip began with a contest against the Minnesota Timberwolves on Saturday.
Minnesota came in with the Western Conference’s best record, as well as the NBA’s best defensive rating. Yet the Lakers surprised Minnesota by getting out to a 17-6 start on the strength of their defense. But once LeBron James went out to rest, the Timberwolves fought back to make things competitive.
Los Angeles fell behind later on as it went cold offensively, but it was able to remain in the game thanks to a big advantage at the free throw line. The team finally regained the lead early in the fourth quarter, but it was a very brief lead, as it continued to play from behind.
With just under a minute remaining, the Lakers were down by four when they had a golden opportunity. Anthony Davis blocked a shot attempt by Anthony Edwards, which led to a transition opportunity. But Jarred Vanderbilt had his layup attempt blocked, and on the other end, guard Mike Conley hit a 3-pointer. LeBron James then completed a 3-point play while a technical foul was called on Jaden McDaniels, resulting in a made free throw from Austin Reaves that brought the Lakers to within three.
After they got a defensive stop, James hit a long jumper, but it was ruled a 2-pointer, as the officials ruled his toe was barely on the 3-point line. Edwards made just one of two free throws after being fouled, but James couldn’t get off a shot before time expired, and the Lakers fell short, 108-106.
While Davis and James put up their usual numbers, no one provided them with any real help offensively. As a team, L.A. shot just 42.0% from the field and 29.2% from 3-point range. While the Timberwolves made just 35.3% of their 3-point attempts, they made five more shots from that distance.
The Lakers will get to play out their frustrations from this loss fairly quickly, as they will get back on the court on Sunday against the New Orleans Pelicans.
Anthony Davis: A-plus
Davis, as has often been the case, was dominant early. He shot 8-of-9 and scored 17 points, to go along with eight rebounds, in the first quarter. The Lakers went away from him in the second quarter, as he had only three shot attempts in that period, and not coincidentally, they lost their lead.
He finished the game with 33 points on 12-of-17 shooting, 17 rebounds, eight assists, four steals and two blocked shots. Keep in mind he had this type of performance against Rudy Gobert, who is a strong favorite to win the Defensive Player of the Year award.
Taurean Prince: B-minus
Prince couldn’t find the mark early, but he got going later on and helped keep the Lakers within striking distance. He converted half of his six attempts from 3-point range, and he finished with nine points, three steals, two rebounds and one assist in 33 minutes.
Cam Reddish: C-minus
Reddish returned after missing Thursday’s game with a groin issue. While he had three rebounds and four assists, Los Angeles got almost nothing from him offensively. He shot just 2-of-7 and scored only four points in 22 minutes.
Jarred Vanderbilt: B
Vanderbilt grabbed five rebounds and added two steals and one assist in 27 minutes, and he took turns guarding Mike Conley and Anthony Edwards. While Edwards scored 31 points, he shot a mediocre 10-of-23 and was successful on just two of his eight attempts from downtown.
The Lakers forward managed to shoot 3-of-7 from the field and score eight points. He is starting to cut to the basket in the team’s set offense and make some type of effort to run the floor in transition. That is how he can avoid being an offensive liability since he continues to fire blanks from the outside (he missed both of his 3-point attempts on Saturday).
LeBron James: B-plus
James, who turned 39 years of age on Saturday, was suffering from a non-COVID illness, so it was unknown if he would play until shortly before the opening tip. He was relatively quiet in the first half (by his standards), and he gradually cranked things up in the second half.
The superstar was livid when the officials ruled his potential game-tying shot in crunch time a 2-pointer. Television replays appeared to show his toe was a sliver behind the 3-point line at one point during his shot release.
He finished with 26 points on 10-of-21 shooting, six assists, three assists, three steals and one blocked shot. It’s unfortunate he didn’t come through in the clutch in this game, but without him, L.A. wouldn’t have even been in position to have a shot at winning.
Rui Hachimura: D
Hachimura shot just 2-of-8 and scored only five points while only managing one rebound in 17 minutes, as he had two of his shots near the rim blocked.
D'Angelo Russell: D
After shooting well in his last three games, Russell reverted back to the cold shooting he had been saddled with for most of December. He shot just 1-of-4 and finished with five points, three assists and one rebound in 20 minutes.
While drawing an offensive foul in the third quarter, he suffered a bruised tailbone. He missed the rest of the game as a result, and the Lakers could’ve used a couple of buckets from him during their attempted rally late in the contest.
Austin Reaves: D
Reaves had one of his worst shooting games of the season on Saturday. He shot just 2-of-11 and missed all five of his 3-point tries, although he did get to the free throw line often enough and went 5-of-6 there. Other than his nine points, his only contribution in 29 minutes was two rebounds.
Christian Wood: B-plus
Wood came into the game for 13 minutes and made a nice contribution. He made both of his 3-point attempts and scored seven points to go along with five rebounds and one blocked shot. This type of play from him should help him regain his spot in head coach Darvin Ham’s regular rotation.
