Five reasons the Timberwolves beat the Lakers in five games

Not only did the Timberwolves upset the third-seeded Lakers in the first round of the Western Conference playoffs, they did so handily.

Minnesota downed Los Angeles in just five games, beating the Lakers twice on their home floor.

How did Minnesota so drastically outperform the prognosticators expectations? Here are five reasons the Timberwolves beat the Lakers with relative ease: ADVERTISEMENT There are numerous ways in which Edwards helped his team, but the most notable was in Game 4.

Edwards essentially stole a contest in which the Wolves were largely outplayed with some sensational shot-making at the start of the fourth quarter to get the Wolves back into the game, then with prolific playmaking at the end to win it.

He scored 43 points to go with nine rebounds and six assists Sunday in the game that proved to be what broke the Lakers spirits.

But even on the nights when Edwards stat lines were less gaudy, his impact remained profound.

The Lakers had no matchup for the all-star guard, meaning they had to build their entire defensive scheme around stopping him.

Their gap-heavy, switch-heavy approach designed to limit his runway to the paint freed up Minnesotas other players to shine.

That left Minnesotas shooters open on the perimeter and Rudy Gobert standing by himself near the rim.

It created mismatches that Julius Randle was able to exploit.

Edwards offensive prowess put the Lakers in a bind from which they could not escape.

When you play next to (him), it made the game a lot easier, because they throw two or three people at him, Randle said.

So, youve just got to be willing to move and be in the right spaces on the floor.

Youve got to be able to take advantage of that.

Theres not a person in the world that can guard him one-on-one.

So, teams are throwing everything at him.

I always tell him, Go be great, but if you need me, Im right there for us.

I just try to make the game easy on him by attacking and putting pressure (on the defense).

ADVERTISEMENT Minnesota eviscerated the Lakers on the glass by the end of the series, culminating in a Game 5 in which Minnesota outrebounded Los Angeles 54-37.

The Lakers best lineup LeBron James, Luka Doncic, Rui Hachimura, Austin Reaves and Dorian Finney-Smith included five guards/wings and zero centers.

That unit features five guys who can space the floor and play off the catch offensively.

But while it had length, it did not have size.

So there was no one to box out Gobert on the interior.

And there was no one to deter Edwards, Randle or Jaden McDaniels from attacking the paint.

Small ball is great in doses, but Minnesota proved to have the size to punish the Lakers approach.

The Wolves were bigger, faster and stronger than Los Angeles.

Those physical advantages led to Minnesota not only outrebounding the Lakers but also winning the turnover battle.

That meant Minnesota got more looks at the rim than the Lakers.

Minnesota took 435 shots to the Lakers 394 in the series.

The Wolves had more shot attempts than Los Angeles in every single game.

The Wolves also attempted 16 more free throws than the Lakers.

The more shots you get up, the better chance you have of outscoring your opponent.

The sheer volume of attempts allowed Minnesota to win games even though the Lakers generated higher numbers of open and wide-open looks in Games 2-4, and it allowed the Wolves to overcome a dreadful shooting performance Wednesday in which they went 7 for 47 from beyond the arc.

Lakers coach J.J.

Redick noted theres a tradeoff to every lineup decision he could make in the series.

The Lakers struggled to score when their lone center, Jaxson Hayes, was on the floor.

So, Los Angeles ditched Hayes in favor of small ball for all of Game 5, and the Lakers were promptly destroyed on the glass.

ADVERTISEMENT Frankly, given Los Angeles lack of depth, Redick didnt have many options.

Yes, the Lakers needed a center on the court to limit the impact of Gobert on Wednesday, but Hayes isnt a good enough player to receive extended minutes in a playoff game.

Timberwolves coach Chris Finch, meanwhile, has a wide range of buttons to press, and did so masterfully.

In Games 3 and 4, when it was clear Minnesota needed offense and floor spacing down the stretch, Finch turned to Naz Reid and Donte DiVincenzo.

On Wednesday, when the Lakers went small, Finch was able to lean into Gobert for the big mans interior dominance.

When Minnesota needed a jolt of energy, Finch turned to rookie wing Terence Shannon Jr.

So often, depth is thought of as a mode of spreading out minutes to keep players fresh.

But just as important in the playoffs is the optionality it gives a team to attack an opponents weaknesses and mitigate strengths.

For every challenge an opponent presents this postseason, Minnesota figures to have answers somewhere across its eight-man rotation of starter-quality players.

I think thats what makes this team special is you have so many guys that can start games and that can finish the game, DiVincenzo said.

How many coaches in the NBA have that luxury? The Lakers trotted out some talented five-man scoring lineups in this series.

But the effectiveness of those groupings was limited by Minnesotas number of quality defenders.

When push came to shove in the fourth quarters of every game, Minnesotas defense tightened the screws and suffocated the Lakers offense.

Los Angeles shot no better than 35% from the floor in the final frame of any game, scoring no more than 20 points in a fourth quarter all series.

ADVERTISEMENT And, on the flip side, the Lakers didnt have nearly enough defenders on the floor at any one time to match up with Minnesota.

It took little effort from Minnesotas offense to generate a tasty mismatch that Edwards, Randle or even McDaniels could exploit off the bounce to either score or collapse the Los Angeles defense.

Two-way players are at a premium come playoff time for matchup purposes, and Minnesotas roster is uniquely flush.

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