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Had the Los Angeles Lakers extended the best-of-seven series against the Minnesota Timberwolves to a Game 6, they very likely would've been significantly short-handed.
LeBron James would've been unlikely to play in the rest of the series after reportedly suffering a Grade 2 MCL sprain in his left knee when he collided with Donte DiVincenzo during Minnesota's series-clinching Game 5 win Wednesday night.
Luka Doncic was dealing with a back injury after he fell awkwardly on physical drive to the hoop during the first half of Wednesday's game, and news broke Friday that Austin Reaves played Games 4 and 5 with an unreported toe injury.
Lakers Nation host Trevor Lane reports that Reaves was dealing with a big toe sprain, which is commonly referred to as turf toe. Per Lane, Reaves likely would've missed 2-4 weeks had the injury occurred during the regular season.
Can confirm that Austin Reaves was dealing with a left big toe sprain during the Playoffs. Was considered to be a 2-4 week injury but he gutted it out. I'm told Reaves was not walking on it on off days to try to get through the playoffs.
— Trevor Lane (@Trevor_Lane) May 2, 2025
In the end, the Wolves dominated the series while James and Doncic were healthy for the first three games. Reaves was essentially a non-factor, and it may not have mattered in the end because none of them, healthy or otherwise, would've been able to stop Rudy Gobert from scoring 27 points and gobbling up 24 rebounds in the decisive Game 5 victory for Minnesota.
On top of that, Doncic and Reaves were clearly targeted as defensive liabilities by Anthony Edwards, Julius Randle and Jaden McDaniels. The Lakers simply did not match up well with the Wolves, and the result is an early May entrance into the offseason while the Wolves await the Warriors or Rockets in the Western Conference semifinals.
Timberwolves news, rumors and analysis
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Six players who could succeed Celtics guard as Sixth Man of the Year
The Boston Celtics are promoting Payton Pritchard to the starting lineup. That means that the NBA will have a new Sixth Man of the Year winner. Here are six candidates to succeed Pritchard as SMOY. 1. Naz Reid, Minnesota Timberwolves Reid won the award after the 2023-24 season when he averaged 13.5 points and made 41.4 percent of his three-pointers as the Timberwolves' backup big man. After Reid signed a five-year deal to stay with the team, he's clearly a big part of Minnesota's future plans and could continue to play big minutes — he averaged 27.5 minutes last season. That's a lot of opportunity to rack up stats for a team that should be quite good next season. 2. Jabari Smith Jr., Houston Rockets Smith is in a similar position to Reid as an overqualified backup big man who can put up points and shoot from outside. He's not as good from three-point range as Reid, but Smith's defense and shot-blocking are better. Smith may not be a starter with Kevin Durant and Amen Thompson locked into the starting lineup and Houston Rockets coach Ime Udoka interested in using "double-big" lineups with Alperen Sengun playing alongside Steven Adams. But he's going to get a lot of minutes for a very good team, especially if the 22-year-old keeps improving. 3. De'Andre Hunter, Cleveland Cavaliers Like Reid, Hunter is a talented young player who would be starting for the majority of NBA teams. He started all but six games of his career before playing in a sixth man role for the Atlanta Hawks and the Cleveland Cavaliers in 2024-25. Hunter is capable of providing size, athleticism and scoring off the bench — something the Cavs need with super-sub Ty Jerome gone to the Memphis Grizzlies. The biggest impediment to Hunter winning this award is probably the chance that he becomes Cleveland's starting small forward instead. 4. Brook Lopez, L.A. Clippers Brook Lopez has only come off the bench in 40 of his 1,105 career games, but that's his new role as a member of the Clippers. Traditionally, Sixth Man of the Year goes to an offensive player, but Lopez is an elite rim-protector, having finished second in Defensive Player of the Year voting in 2022-23. Even at age 37, he should be great defensively, and he shot 37.3 percent from behind the arc last season. Especially if the Clippers end up a top team in the Western Conference, Lopez has a real chance at being the oldest SMOY in history, beating out Jamal Crawford, who won at age 36 for the Clippers. 5. Nickeil Alexander-Walker, Atlanta Hawks Alexander-Walker is one of the Atlanta Hawks' prized offseason acquisitions and a player whose combination of tough defense, shooting and ball-handling could make him quite valuable. In fact, he might start on a team that hadn't already used the No. 1 pick in 2024 on small forward Zaccharie Risacher. "NAW" was already one of the NBA's best reserves last season for the Timberwolves, so his bigger role could set the three-and-D wing up for some hardware. 6. Jordan Clarkson, New York Knicks Clarkson already won this award in 2021 with the Utah Jazz in 2021. Now he's in an ideal role with the New York Knicks where his job is simple: come off the bench and get buckets. The Knicks have a new coach in Mike Brown who might actually rest his starters occasionally, with a team that's strong on wing defense and light on wing scoring off the bench. Plus, playing in New York City has never hurt a player's chances of being noticed by the media.
NFL under fire for decision on Chiefs WR Rashee Rice
The Kansas City Chiefs appeared to receive an early gift from the NFL regarding wide receiver Rashee Rice's looming suspension. The third-year receiver is set to have a disciplinary hearing on Sept. 30 after he pleaded guilty to collision involving serious bodily injury and racing on a highway causing bodily injury. He was sentenced to 30 days in jail and five years of probation. The timing of Rice's hearing is curious because he pleaded guilty to his charges on the same day Minnesota Vikings wide receiver Jordan Addison pleaded guilty to a misdemeanor charge connected to his arrest for alleged DUI. The league has already suspended Addison for the first three games of the upcoming season. Per Mike Florio of Pro Football Talk, a league source told him that the NFL doesn't typically delay hearings as it has in the case of Rice, preferring to finalize a punishment before Week 1. “Maybe I’m a conspiracy theorist, but this is odd," said the unnamed source, via Florio. “You hardly ever see players get suspended in season unless they did something in season like a drug test or something.” The suspicion from the source and Florio is that the league is keeping Rice available for marquee matchups in the early season. The Chiefs begin their season in Sao Paulo, Brazil, playing the Los Angeles Chargers. Kansas City then plays the Philadelphia Eagles, New York Giants ("Sunday Night Football") and Baltimore Ravens. Florio suggested that with a hearing date of Sept. 30, Rice would likely start any suspension the Chiefs' Week 5 contest against the Jacksonville Jaguars on "Monday Night Football." "At a time when many think the league favors the Chiefs, situations like this will not become evidence to the contrary," Florio said. While the early slate of games is impressive for the Chiefs, their schedule is jam-packed with heavyweight matchups. The next four games after Week 5 include the Detroit Lions ("Sunday Night Football"), Las Vegas Raiders, Washington Commanders ("Monday Night Football" and Buffalo Bills. While the league has some explaining to do as to why it chose Sept. 30 as the date, it's hard to see why the Chiefs would have an advantage by losing Rice for those games.
Pete Alonso gets awesome gift from Mets after breaking HR record
Pete Alonso is officially the New York Mets' all-time home run king, and the team has pulled out all the stops while crowning its slugger. Alonso hit the 253rd and 254th home runs of his Mets career in the team's 13-5 win over the Atlanta Braves on Tuesday night. He surpassed previous franchise record-holder Darryl Strawberry, who hit 252 home runs with the Mets from 1983-1990. Prior to Thursday night's game against the Braves, the Mets presented Alonso with a custom painting that was made from 253 baseballs. The portrait shows Alonso in the home-run trot from his 253rd homer. That was not the only gift the Mets had for Alonso, either. They also gave him a new Ford F-150 truck. Alonso entered free agency last offseason but did not generate as much interest as he had hoped. He wound up returning to the Mets on a two-year, $54M deal. The second year is a player option, and Alonso is widely expected to opt out. One Mets player suggested that Alonso's new home run record could inspire the 30-year-old to re-sign with the team, but New York would have to pay up to make that happen. Alonso entered Thursday batting .272 with 28 home runs and an MLB-leading 98 RBI. His relationship with the Mets seems strong at the moment, and the gifts may have helped solidify it even further. That does not mean Alonso is going to offer any type of hometown discount.
Stephen A. Smith publicly challenges Packers QB Jordan Love
When Green Bay Packers franchise quarterback Jordan Love is healthy and firing on all cylinders, he's proved to be one of the more exciting young signal-callers in the NFL. ESPN talking head Stephen A. Smith believes Love is an extremely talented quarterback, but he did challenge the former first-round pick when he was asked where the Packers will rank among the top teams in the NFC this season. Love can put up numbers, but Smith wants to see Green Bay's quarterback do it when it really matters. "When I look at the Green Bay Packers, Jordan Love is a stud, and I get that. The brother can play...in the regular season," Smith said on ESPN's "First Take" on Thursday. "I'm looking for him to show up in big moments." Smith believes the Philadelphia Eagles, Washington Commanders, Tampa Bay Buccaneers and Detroit Lions are all ahead of the Packers in the NFC because Love has yet to prove that he can be a consistent playoff talent. He threw for 272 yards and three touchdowns in his very first playoff appearance — a road win over the Dallas Cowboys — but in his last two playoff games, both losses, he's thrown for 406 yards and just two touchdowns compared to five interceptions. Three of those interceptions came last postseason in a wild-card loss to the Philadelphia Eagles. In order for the Packers to be contenders, Love has to prove that he can live up to the moment. It's a process for young quarterbacks, but he has all the pieces around him to be successful in 2025. Love is in the prime of his career, and there should be some high expectations on him as the Packers head into the 2025 season. General manager Brian Gutekunst has been clear that he wants the Packers to compete for championships, and they believe they have the quarterback to do it. That's why they gave Love a four-year $220 million contract extension heading into last season. Anyone can go out and have regular-season success. As such, Smith is right. Love has to start proving it in the playoffs.
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