The Timberwolves are capitalizing on athleticism and size advantages in taking a 2-1 series lead over the Lakers.
MINNEAPOLIS – The key to having or even stealing home-court advantage is to actually take advantage of it.
It might seem like an old bit from “Seinfeld” – it’s not the taking of a rental car reservation, it’s the holding – but the facts hadn’t favored the Minnesota Timberwolves lately at Target Center.
Specifically, playing at home didn’t do them much good after sweeping Phoenix in last spring’s playoff run. They went 1-5 on their court against Denver and Dallas, compared to 4-2 on the road before they were ousted in six games by the Mavericks, sure enough, in Minneapolis.
Maybe things will play out differently this time. Not only did the Timberwolves win their first-round opener last weekend to grab home court away from the higher-seeded Los Angeles Lakers, they backed that up by beating L.A. again Friday, 116-104, in their 2025 playoff debut before their fans.
Here are five takeaways from the night, which saw Minnesota outscore the Lakers 13-1 over the final 4 minutes 37 seconds. They take a 2-1 series lead into Sunday’s Game 4 at the same site (3:30 ET, ABC).
1. Edwards ignites late in closer role
Wolves coach Chris Finch said it after Game 1, so he didn’t need to after Game 3: “The best version of Ant is when he’s flirting with a triple double.”
Anthony Edwards hasn’t been a metrics darling in this series, but efficiency tumbles down the priority list behind winning, and he’s the biggest reason for Minnesota’s 2-1 lead. He took 26 shots to get his 29 points, but Edwards also had eight rebounds, eight assists and five 3-pointers in 10 tries.
It was almost palpable when the teams resumed play after a timeout with 4:37 left. Edwards started the play out top and launched a step-back 3 that broke the 103-103 tie. He found Naz Reid on another after-timeout play a minute later, with Reid’s 28-footer making it 109-103. Then Edwards zig-zagged through the paint for a layup that put his team up 111-104.
In all, he outscored the Lakers by himself over those final 4:37, 7-1.
Edwards seizing the game was doubly noticeable because the Lakers’ star guard, Luka Dončić, had an off night in more ways than one. Battling a reported stomach virus, Dončić needed every bit of help he could get from ageless LeBron James.
Luka Dončić struggles through a 6-for-16, 5-turnover performance against the Timberwolves in Game 3.
2. LeBron defying time and logic
Whatever the secret is to LeBron James’ personal fountain of youth – two off days between Games 2 and 3, his diligence in the weight room/training table/whirlpool/hyperbaric chamber, or something else entirely – it was on full display in Game 3.
James scored 38 points on 13-for-21 shooting, shot 5-for-9 from the arc and grabbed 10 rebounds. He blocked two shots and had two steals. He logged 41 minutes.
Sixteen of his points came in the second quarter, when Dončić’s struggles were most apparent. James drew contact on a 3-pointer and sank all his free throws. In the fourth quarter, he drained three consecutive threes from the nearly identical spot to get the Lakers back from a 97-90 deficit to 100-99.
All the while, he kept adding to his mountain of personal statistics by doing what no 40-year-old – and frankly, few 30-year-olds – have ever done in NBA play. Father Time still might prevail, but for now the old guy needs a standing eight count in his ongoing bout with James.
3. Green light that green-lights victory
There were three possible outcomes when Minnesota coach Chris Finch heeded Edwards’ frantic twirling of his upraised index finger with 2:05 left and challenged an out-of-bounds play.
It was an uphill battle, with the initial call claiming that Edwards had fouled Rui Hachimura as he drove toward the hoop. The Lakers were in the bonus, so Hachimura was headed to the foul line with a chance to cut into the Wolves’ 111-104 lead.
There were two other possibilities: Maybe Edwards indeed had gotten “all ball” and wasn’t guilty of a foul, and the ball simply went out of bounds off the Minnesota player. The dream scenario for the home team would have been clearing Edwards of a foul and learning that the ball touched Hachimura last on its trek beyond the baseline.
And that was the ruling, to the delight of Finch, Edwards and the crowd.
Granted, had Edwards not had his layup blocked by James at the other end and had the Wolves managed to avoid a 24-second violation before the possession expired, the impact could have been greater. But on a night when the Lakers already were giving away points (28) on turnovers (19), that overturn stung.
4. Dončić vs. Gobert: Tables turned
Folks in the building or watching from home couldn’t miss the irony of Dončić isolating against Wolves center Rudy Gobert deep in the third quarter. It was a flashback to a play that haunted the 7-foot defensive specialist and his team all summer: In Game 2 of the West finals, Dončić – with Dallas then – gave the Mavericks a 109-108 victory and 2-0 lead in the series (they won in five) by dancing with the ball, faking Gobert off his moorings and nailing a step-back 3-pointer.
Not this time, though.
As Dončić revved up, Gobert reached out and poked the ball away. Jaden McDaniels broke downcourt for a layup and got whacked by the scrambling Dončić for a three-point play that made it 80-75.
5. Clock is ticking: Sunday matinee
An afternoon game on Sunday after Friday nightcap poses a turnaround challenge to these teams: Thirty-eight hours is about as tight as it gets between postseason games in the modern NBA.
Both squads have been exceedingly healthy, as far as injured-list dwellers are concerned. But Dončić had that stomach bug and it remains to be seen how much bounce the 40-year-old James will have for the tipoff at 2:30 p.m. local time.
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Steve Aschburner has written about the NBA since 1980. You can e-mail him here, find his archive here and follow him on X.
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