Magic Johnson 'Scared' for Lakers in NBA Playoffs Because of Anthony Edwards

On the eve of the Los Angeles Lakers starting their journey in the NBA playoffs, franchise icon Magic Johnson is getting some butterflies about the matchup with the Minnesota Timberwolves.

In a post on X, Johnson explained he's "scared" for the Lakers because of what the NBA's "most exciting player" Anthony Edwards can do against them.

The Lakers-Timberwolves matchup might be the most-anticipated of the eight first-round series in the playoffs.

Los Angeles has arguably the best duo entering the postseason with Luka Dončić and LeBron James. There are concerns about the team's defensive upside in the playoffs and lack of a true center that present matchup problems against the right opponent.

Minnesota doesn't have a dynamic offensive center, but Rudy Gobert will make an impact on defense. His size can also cause problems for Lakers a team that ranked 19th in rebound percentage during the regular season.

Ultimately, though, this series will likely be decided by Edwards' ability to help the Timberwolves' offense keep pace with the Lakers because they don't have many proven playoff scorers on the roster.

Julius Randle is a 34.4 percent shooter from the field in 15 postseason games.

Jaden McDaniels has been an efficient playoff shooter (54.4 percent overall; 44.7 percent from three), but his game-to-game consistency hasn't been there. He has scored fewer than 10 points in 11 of 22 playoff games.

Edwards, who is relishing the underdog role going into this series, was a dominant force in Minnesota's run to the Western Conference Finals last season. He averaged 27.6 points on 48.1 percent shooting (40.0 percent from three), 7.0 rebounds and 6.5 assists per game in 16 starts.

The Lakers and Timberwolves split four head-to-head meetings in the regular season, but it's hard to read anything into those results. Three of those games were played before Dončić was traded to Los Angeles.

Gobert didn't play in their final meeting on Feb. 27, which the Lakers won 111-102. James led all scorers with 33 points and 17 rebounds. Edwards scored 18 points on just 12 field-goal attempts, tied for his fifth-fewest in a game all season.

The Timberwolves and Lakers will play Game 1 of the Western Conference first round series at Crypto.com Arena on Saturday at 8:30 p.m. ET.