The Los Angeles Lakers being eliminated in the first round of the NBA playoffs was an unexpected end to an otherwise contending season.
Their small-ball lineup was no match for the Timberwolves, whose size and physicality kept them ahead, even when the shots were not falling.
Despite Luka Doncic leading the Lakers with 28 points and nine assists, Minnesota center Rudy Gobert took care of the ball with 24 rebounds.
“I think we fell short a little bit in this area of doing some of the dirty work,” said Lakers forward Jarred Vanderbilt. “The shots wasn’t really falling for any team. It came down to dirty work.”
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Lakers center Jaxson Hayes did not see any playing time during the matchup, he noted how the team was going in a different direction. Hayes played 7.5 minutes per game during the postseason and has not been on the court for more than nine minutes during the series.
“They told me, saying ‘just to stay ready’ and they’re gonna try some other things out,” Hayes said. “It was coach’s decision and I respect that always.”
Forward Rui Hachimura got the start for the matchup, ultimately scoring 23 points.
“We didn’t get the rebounds, we need somebody to get the rebounds,” Hachimura said. “I got to be one of them.”
In early February, the Lakers traded center Anthony Davis for guard Luka Doncic. With 26.1 points, 9.3 rebounds, and 2.3 blocks per game, Davis helped the Lakers win the 2019-2020 NBA Championship.
He also helped the Lakers be the inaugural winners of the NBA Cup, scoring 41 points, 20 rebounds, and four blocks in the title game. Adjusting to the trade came with challenges, according to forward LeBron James. Certain plays had to change to best fit Doncic.
“Anytime you make a big accusation in the middle of the season, it’s always going to be challenging, not only for me but for [Austin Reaves], for the rest of the group,” James said. “We went from wanting to touch the ball in [Davis’] hands in pick and rolls, in post-ups or elbow catches … and that whole, obviously, dynamic changed.”
As the Lakers enter the offseason, there is a focus on building a team around Doncic.
“When you make a huge trade at the deadline where you trade your starting center for a point guard, of course that’s gonna create significant issues with your roster,” said Lakers general manager Rob Pelinka. “This offseason, one of our primary goals is gonna be to add size in our frontcourt at the center position.”
For forward Dorian Finney-Smith, a takeaway from the series against Minnesota is the importance of building chemistry. Finney-Smith started in 20 of the 48 games he played in the Purple and Gold. He shot at 39.8 percent from the three-point line during that period.
“We just probably need more time together,” Finney-Smith said. “When you get that time, you can really get on each other without thinking about somebody else’s feelings.”
After being limited to 36 games due to injury this season, Vanderbilt looks forward to going into the offseason healthy. He noted how he had not had a healthy offseason in two years.
“Last summer, coming off multiple surgeries and not being able to work out all summer,” Vanderbilt said. “Excited to be able to have a healthy summer so I can really put the time in, being able to work on my game.”
