Jaden McDaniels led the Minnesota Timberwolves with 25 points in a dominant 117-95 victory over LeBron James and the Los Angeles Lakers on Saturday, securing a commanding start to their NBA Western Conference playoff series.
Luka Doncic, playing his first post-season game with the Lakers after arriving in a stunning February trade, scored 37 points and James, chasing a fifth title in his 22nd NBA season, added 19 after shaking off a slow start that saw him go scoreless in the first quarter.
But the Lakers were no match for the Timberwolves, who trailed by seven after the first quarter, took control in the second and never let up to score the first blow in the best-of-seven series.
Naz Reid scored 23 points off the bench, drilling six of Minnesota’s franchise playoff-record 21 3-pointers.
Anthony Edwards added 22 points, eight rebounds and nine assists for Minnesota, who led by as many as 27.
A 10-0 Lakers run cut the deficit to 88-71 in the third quarter, but the Timberwolves had an answer for every Lakers run.
“I think we just came out ready to play,” said Edwards, who had advised his teammates before the game to come out “ready to fight.”
“Everybody’s got to trust their work, trust themselves, and they did that tonight,” he said.
Lakers coach JJ Redick said his team was “mentally ready” but didn’t respond to Minnesota’s physicality.
“I thought our spirit was right,” Redick said. “I thought even when they made runs our huddles were great, the communication was great.
“(But) when they started playing with a lot of thrust and physicality, we just didn’t respond immediately to that,” he added.
The Lakers were the only home team to lose on the opening day of first-round action.
Nikola Jokic scored 29 points and Aaron Gordon added 25 as the Nuggets edged the Los Angeles Clippers 112-110 in an overtime thriller in Denver.
The New York Knicks put together a 21-0 scoring run in their 40-point fourth quarter to pull away for a 123-112 victory over the Detroit Pistons at Madison Square Garden.
The Indiana Pacers romped to a 117-98 victory over Giannis Antetokounmpo and the Milwaukee Bucks.
Reigning NBA Most Valuable Player Jokic added nine rebounds, 12 assists and three steals for the Nuggets, who erased an early 15-point deficit to grab the win in game one of their Western Conference series.
Russell Westbrook came up big on both ends of the floor, his basket with 3:37 left in the fourth quarter, giving the Nuggets their first lead since the first period.
Westbrook drilled a 3-pointer that put Denver up 98-96 with 24.1 seconds left in regulation.
James Harden tied it as the Clippers forced the extra session, which Gordon opened with a dunk.
Denver wouldn’t trail again. They were up by three when Westbrook broke up a Clippers inbounds attempt, and Jokic sealed it at the free-throw line.
‘Staying smart’
Harden led the Clippers with 32 points. Kawhi Leonard added 27, but the Nuggets, who ended the regular season in turmoil after sacking coach Michael Malone with three games remaining, prevailed.
In New York, Jalen Brunson scored 23 of his 34 points in the second half while Karl-Anthony Towns and OG Anunoby scored 23 points apiece for the Knicks, who trailed Detroit by eight heading into the fourth quarter of a back-and-forth battle.
“Staying smart and composed,” Brunson said of the key to the Knicks’ fourth-quarter surge. “Just us being smart and finding a way to win the game.”
Tobias Harris scored 25 points and Cade Cunningham added 21 for the Pistons, who are in the playoffs for the first time since 2019, but haven’t won a playoff game since 2008.
In Indianapolis, Pascal Siakam scored 25 points to lead six players to score in double figures for the Pacers, who led by as many as 28 points.
Two-time NBA MVP Antetokounmpo led all scorers with 36 points and grabbed 12 rebounds, but the rest of the Bucks’ starters combined for just 14 points.