LeBron James, Luka Doncic, JJ Redick React to Lakers' Loss to Anthony Edwards, Wolves

Los Angeles Lakers star LeBron James and head coach JJ Redick acknowledged the team, at least for one game, didn't grasp the challenge ahead against the Minnesota Timberwolves in the first round of the 2025 NBA playoffs.

"Maybe it took us one playoff game to now get a feel for it and know what type of intensity, the type of physicality is going to be brought to the game," James told reporters after a 117-95 defeat. "But that's just the way they play. So we should be more than prepared for that on Tuesday night [in Game 2]."

Redick offered a similarly blunt assessment.

"It's not to say our guys weren't ready to withstand a playoff-level basketball game. … I'm not sure physically we were ready," he said. "And really when [the Wolves] started playing with a lot of thrust and physicality, we just didn't respond to meet that."

The Timberwolves had 12 more points than the Lakers in the paint and shot 21-of-42 from beyond the arc. Redick and his staff garnered plenty of praise for Los Angeles' work defensively in the regular season, but L.A. watched as Minnesota's Anthony Edwards, Jaden McDaniels and Naz Reid all dropped 20-plus points.

Luka Dončić, meanwhile, was the only Lakers player to eclipse that threshold. He had a game-high 37 points and was his team's leading rebounder with eight boards.

"I just tried to set the tone early," Dončić said. "But obviously, one assist, that's not good enough for me."

The five-time All-Star added that the Lakers "let go of the rope" after jumping ahead by seven points to end the first quarter. Minnesota outscored Los Angeles 38-20 in the second frame.

The series is far from over and a lot has changed from last year. But fans might be seeing James' comments in particular and getting reminders of the 2024 first round, when head coach Darvin Ham tried to accentuate the positive after an 11-point loss to the Denver Nuggets.

The way in which the Lakers lost was the nightmare scenario from the moment they sent Anthony Davis to the Dallas Mavericks to land Dončić. They lost an elite rim protector on top of still lacking in perimeter defense. Minnesota exploited both of those facets.

The playoffs are all about making adjustments. Redick and his assistants will watch the Game 1 film and try to nullify Minnesota's edge inside. The Wolves probably aren't going to knock down 21 three-pointers in every game, either.

Still, Saturday's contest may have exposed some flaws on the Lakers that simply aren't solvable with the personnel at Redick's disposal.