The Minnesota Timberwolves handily defeated the Los Angeles Lakers in the opening round of the NBA Playoffs, winning the series 4-1.
Minnesota dominated L.A. up front; the Lakers' lack of size ultimately led to the team's demise. The T'Wolves continually got second-chance shots off offensive rebounds, and it became a situation where Minnesota imposed its will on JJ Redick's team.
LeBron on the foul on Ant:
— Hater Report (@HaterReport_) April 27, 2025
“Hand is part of the ball, that's what they say" pic.twitter.com/OmwaaYmnhr
The series arguably turned in Game 4 in Minnesota. With the Timberwolves up 2-1 in the series, this became the pivotal game. A win for L.A. would create a 2-2 standing, with a de facto best-of-three situation to follow (with two of those games in Los Angeles). As it happened, Minnesota won the game, took a 3-1 lead back to L.A., and the Lakers effectively were cooked by that point.
During Q4 of tonight's #LALatMIN game, Replay Center officials determined the Coach's Challenge by MIN was successful and the original call of out-of-bounds was overturned to a proximate foul committed by the Lakers' LeBron James. pic.twitter.com/ymYU39zeOk
— NBA Official (@NBAOfficial) April 28, 2025
Game 4 was marred in controversy on a very questionable foul call on LeBron James. The call on the floor had the ball off Anthony Edwards. The Lakers would've gotten the ball back down one point with less than ten seconds remaining in the contest.
Minnesota challenged the call, and it was deemed that James committed a foul. Edwards hit the two free throws, and ultimately, it was the difference in the game.
LeBron on overhead cam that caught his Game 4 foul on Anthony Edwards:
— Lakers Better (@LakersBetter) May 26, 2025
“Where the f**k did that camera come from?” pic.twitter.com/yGamDBAFId
On the Mind the Game podcast with former NBA great Steve Nash, James finally opened up on the call. Nash and James agreed that the camera angle and the quality of the footage itself appeared to be a bit strange — and not something you'd regularly see during a basketball broadcast.
"There was a piece of camera work in the postseason of our game in Minnesota that I have never seen in my f*cking life. The strip on [Edwards], I've never seen that computer work in my life. Where the f*ck did that camera come from? It was like some forensic files type s*it. Oh my goodness."
Based on how the Lakers were thoroughly dominated by the Wolves, L.A. surely would love another crack at Minnesota in next year's postseason. With a full offseason to enhance the roster, the Lakers facing off versus the Wolves with an actual center could be a very intriguing seven-game series.
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