Bout the same.

LAKERS IN CONTROL OF THEIR DESTINYHAVE CLEAR ROAD TO #3 SEED IN WEST!There were 4 teams ahead of us when we were #6 seed: Rockets, Timberwolves, and Nuggets.We are now #4 and have put the Timberwolves in our rear view mirror. We'll soon have opportunities to do the same… https://t.co/5GhLsiQnfk— LakerTom (@LakerTom) March 11, 2026

FROM ABOVE ARTICLE:

The next “most important win”

I joked a bit in my preview that this was the next “most important game.” Partly because the Lakers needed to prove the win against the Knicks was not an outlier, and partly because almost every game over the next couple of weeks will feel like a measuring-stick, prove-it matchup. So, it’s only fitting to call this one the next “most important win.”

The Lakers beat the Timberwolves 120–106, their second consecutive win against a very good team in convincing double-digit fashion. For even more good vibes, the Lakers have now won six of their last seven games and, at 40–25, caught and overtook the Timberwolves for the fourth spot in the West thanks to their 3–0 head-to-head record.

This is the NBA. One week the world feels like it’s in shambles after three straight losses, and the next you’re back on top after a couple of quality wins.

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Today’s notes:

Who is this team winning with defense and hustle?

Deandre Ayton and activity on the glass kept the Lakers afloat early (VIDEO)

Austin Reaves’ 29-point second-half takeover (VIDEO)

Two-way Luka… again

Back to the early-season winning formula and hierarchy

1-Who is this team winning with defense and hustle?

The Lakers opened this game looking like they couldn’t hit the ocean. They missed their first eight shots and their first 15 three-point attempts, crawling their way to just 45 points in the first half. Yet despite one of their worst shotmaking halves of the season, they managed to stay even at 45 thanks to their defense and hustle.

The effort and activity level were good from the start, as was the attention to detail and the commitment to staying in front of their man on drives. The Lakers confused the Timberwolves by continuously mixing switching defense with heavy gap help, zoning principles, and occasional zone.

The result was another very solid defensive performance, which has now become a trend. Over their last seven games, the Lakers have been the third-best defense in the league, allowing only 105.7 points per 100 possessions.

After the Knicks game, I mentioned the fact that the Lakers’ opponents have been missing a lot of threes during this stretch, and last night the Timberwolves made only 9 of their 38 attempts.

However, last night many of the Timberwolves’ threes were impatient, contested isolation pull-ups, as Anthony Edwards and his teammates grew increasingly frustrated with the Lakers’ defense. Edwards scored only 14 points on 2-of-15 shooting and became the latest superstar the Lakers’ defense has forced into an off night during this stretch.

2-Deandre Ayton and activity on the glass kept the Lakers afloat early (VIDEO)

The Lakers probably couldn’t have survived the poor shooting in the first half without what was likely their best offensive rebounding half of the season. They collected 11 offensive boards before halftime and scored 11 second-chance points. Jake LaRavia couldn’t buy a layup but had three offensive rebounds during that stretch, Jarred Vanderbilt had two, and Deandre Ayton, whom I highlighted as the X-factor in my preview, grabbed five.

Ayton scored 12 of his 14 points in the second quarter, with half of them coming on putbacks. His activity in the first half, when he collected a 12-point, 11-rebound double-double during a stretch when the Lakers couldn’t generate any other offense, was key to keeping them afloat.

The Lakers, who were missing their other two big men, Jaxson Hayes and Maxi Kleber, needed Ayton to step up and match Rudy Gobert’s physicality, and he delivered, outplaying the Frenchman convincingly once again.

3-Austin Reaves’ 29-point second-half takeover (VIDEO)

Both Reaves and Dončić struggled in the first half. Dončić went 5 of 15 from the field, while Reaves scored only two points, making just one of his eight attempts. I don’t know what they did in the locker room, but both came out looking like different players. Dončić scored 19 points on 6-of-9 shooting, while Reaves looked unstoppable, scoring 29 of his 31 points after the break. He was able to get downhill and mixed it in with, at times, ridiculous shotmaking that included two four-point plays.

For the second game in a row, Reaves showed he can be a deadly second punch next to Dončić, or at times even the primary scorer, taking full advantage of the extra attention Dončić draws.

Iztok Franko
@iztok_franko

Great to see Luka & Austin cooking again together. Austin incredible 29 points second half.
People talk about him vs long athletic teams…and here is how Luka helps:

Luka HC matchups last night:
McDaniels 26
Ant 13
Anderson 6

Austin:
DiVincenzo 23
Dosumnu 12
Hyland 9
3:39 AM · Mar 11, 2026 · 2.76K Views
2 Replies · 7 Reposts · 67 Likes

4-Two-way Luka… again

For Dončić, this game resembled the previous one against the Knicks: not great scoring efficiency, but still a very impactful overall performance marked by another solid defensive game. Dončić finished with a 31/11/11 triple-double and added two steals and a block. Another high-impact two-way performance, summed up by a team-high +20 in the plus/minus column.

Rebounding, the often overlooked part of Dončić’s defensive contribution, was crucial in this game. Because of the absence of James, Hayes, and Kleber, JJ Redick had to revert to some super-small lineups featuring Rui Hachimura or even Jake LaRavia at the five, and Dončić’s work on the glass was key to keeping the Lakers from getting dominated in those minutes.

5-Back to the early-season winning formula and hierarchy

This was the third consecutive game LeBron James missed, and the Lakers’ third win in a row, including two impressive performances against high-level opposition. So of course the noise about how good the team looks without the 41-year-old veteran will only get louder. It’s something the team is fully aware of, and Redick explained the challenges of making the “big three” work during this injury-riddled season.

Source: Daniel Starkand post on X

We’ll see if Redick and his big three can figure out this complex situation. What is clear is that when you remove one piece from the equation, the hierarchy, the pecking order where everyone plays off two dominant ball handlers, and the defensive composition of the lineups all feel much more natural and straightforward.

Source: Spectrum Sportsnet

It was the winning formula behind the Lakers’ hot start to the season. The model features two great shotmakers getting the reps, space, and shots to reach their comfort zones, while having enough hustle around them to play competent defense.

With the last three wins, the Lakers have improved to 21–9 in games in which both Dončić and Reaves have played, and 10–2 in games when the duo played while James was out.

I wrote about Lakers defense trending up in last games in my observations today. They did a great job against three great offensive players recently: Anthony Edwards to 2/15, 14 ptsJalen Brunson, 8/19, 24 pts, 7 turnoversNikola Jokić, 10/15 25 pts, but 9 turnovers https://t.co/UiLXOG6X87 pic.twitter.com/IBCOlINzc9— Iztok Franko (@iztok_franko) March 11, 2026

The Lakers will beat Minnesota for the third time this season. Led by as many as 23 Tuesday in a 120-106 win. 31-11-11 for Luka, 31-7-8 for Reaves and a massive 14-12 from Deandre Ayton. Lakers have won 6 of 7.— Dan Woike (@DanWoikeSports) March 11, 2026

Final Stats 📊Luka: 31 pts, 11 reb, 11 astAR: 31 pts, 7 reb, 8 astDA: 14 pts, 12 rebLuke: 10 pts, 5-8 FGM pic.twitter.com/gOL8ruKnDW— Los Angeles Lakers (@Lakers) March 11, 2026

Stacking wins 💪 pic.twitter.com/TvVjpNEPFO— Los Angeles Lakers (@Lakers) March 11, 2026

LUKA DONCIC AND AUSTIN REAVES TONIGHT:LUKA: 31 PTS, 11 REB, 11 AST, 3 STL+BLKREAVES: 31 PTS, 7 REB, 8 AST, 50% FG pic.twitter.com/HXNpxlw9oq— LakersMuse (@LALMuse) March 11, 2026

The Lakers beat the Wolves 120-106. Luka 31 pts 11 reb 11 ast 2 stl; Reaves 31 pts 8 ast 7 reb; Ayton 14 pts 12 reb; Kennard 10 pts. Don't look now but LAL has now won six of its last seven games and overtook MIN for the No. 4 spot in the West.— Dave McMenamin (@mcten) March 11, 2026

The Lakers DESTROY the Wolves and have CLINCHED the tiebreaker against Minnesota 😈Now 4th in the West and just 0.5 GB of the 3rd seed 📈 pic.twitter.com/zzHys9bcNT— Lakers All Day Everyday (@LADEig) March 11, 2026

Deandre Ayton vs the Timberwolves:-14PTS-12REB-2AST-1STL pic.twitter.com/GoyJqqZkrb— Laker Performances (@LALPerformance) March 11, 2026

Anoche:✅ LUKA TRIPLE-DOBLE A MEDIA MÁQUINA✅ REAVES ETHICAL HOOPS✅ DOMINAYTON DOBLE-DOBLE EN DOS CUARTOS✅ GRANDES APORTES DE SMART, LARAVIA Y KENNARD ✅ TERCER TRIUNFO AL HILO Y SEXTO EN LOS ÚLTIMOS SIETE https://t.co/LZJAwMiIQ2— Lakers Latam (@LakersLatam) March 11, 2026

Robert Horry says Bam 83 point game needs a asterisk:“43 shots, 43 FTs, I saw some highlights… 83 points is impressive but it gets to a point you have to respect the game. There were moments in this game it wasn’t respected. It’ll go down as 2nd most in the game, I’m putting… pic.twitter.com/IpQxCaLjBy— NBA Courtside (@NBA__Courtside) March 11, 2026

Tim MacMahon GOES OFF on Bam 83 point game “He’s jacking up 3s triple teamed! It was honestly just awful, hideous, disgusting basketball down the stretch… I never ever (x6) want to hear about Heat culture & professionalism and all that crap again because that was the most… pic.twitter.com/xpcYdB6gWU— Heat Central (@HeatCulture13) March 11, 2026

Mad Dog GOES OFF on Bam Adebayo 83 points “What Spoelstra did with the shenanigans was a complete disgrace… When you shoot 43 times and less than 50%, when you shoot 43 FTs and you go 7/22 from 3 against a horrendous team, and you’re in the game in the last 3 minutes with… pic.twitter.com/j1HkniJ9jS— Heat Central (@HeatCulture13) March 11, 2026

The reason there's all this drama about Bam Adebayo's 83-point game – unethical basketball will never be appreciated by the general fanbase. Many stars have done significant damage within 3Qs and sat Q4 because it was a blowout. Kobe 60+ in 3Q. Klay sat with 50 in 3+, and he…— Jim Park (@Sheridanblog) March 11, 2026

FROM ABOVE ARTICLE:

The Lakers finally managed to beat a good team with a convincing end-to-end performance against the Knicks. But the next measuring-stick game arrives immediately. And it won’t be the last one. Three of the next four games on the schedule will present a similar test.

Source: NBA official website

Every game matters in the packed Western Conference standings, and games against direct rivals matter even more. With a win, the Lakers could take the third spot away from the Timberwolves. A loss could leave them just one game ahead of the Suns and the play-in spot.

Source: ESPN

The Timberwolves are healthy and playing at a high level, having won eight of their last ten games, and will be motivated to avenge two early-season losses, especially the last one that ended on an Austin Reaves game-winning buzzer-beating floater.

For the Lakers, the key question is the availability of LeBron James, who is listed as questionable with a right hip contusion and left foot arthritis.

Lakers (39-25) vs Timberwolves (40-24) game facts

Rest: LAL on 1 day of rest; MIN on 2 days of rest

Ranking: LAL 14th in Point Diff (+1.1), MIN 7th in Point Diff (+5.0)

LAL vs MIN 2025-26 record: 2-0 (see Game 2 observations here, Game 5 observations here)

LAL injuries: LeBron James (questionable)

MIN injuries: Kyle Anderson (questionable)

LAL projected starting five: Luka Dončić (G), Marcus Smart (G), Austin Reaves (G), Rui Hachimura (F), Deandre Ayton (C)

LAL key reserves: Luke Kennard, Jake LaRavia, Jaxson Hayes, Maxi Kleber, Jarred Vanderbilt

MIN projected starting five: Donte DiVincenzo (G), Anthony Edwards (G), Jaden McDaniels (F), Julius Randle (F), Rudy Gobert (C)

MIN key reserves: Naz Reid, Ayo Dosunmu, Bones Hyland, Kyle Anderson, Terrence Shannon Jr.

Key storyline: Which Deandre Ayton will show up?
The biggest story around the Lakers after the last game has been, of course, how the team looked without James in the lineup. The addition of a hip contusion to the injury report could potentially prolong his absence. However, if he returns, all eyes again will be on the inner workings of the Lakers’ star trio.

With or without James, Deandre Ayton could be the player to watch. Rudy Gobert and Julius Randle bullied the undersized Lakers inside and on the glass in the playoffs, and Ayton has the bulk and size to compete with them. His 17-point, 10-rebound, 1-block performance, where he thoroughly outplayed Gobert in the second matchup, was one of his more memorable games this season. Most of them came earlier in the season, and Ayton’s play and minutes have diminished since. The Lakers will need Ayton to play solid minutes and prevent Gobert from dominating the paint and the glass on both ends.

Lakers on offense | Timberwolves on defense

The Lakers had two heroes in their two early-season wins against the Timberwolves. Luka Dončić scored 49 points, 11 rebounds, and 8 assists in a dominant performance that forced Chris Finch to move away from drop coverage with Gobert and then manipulated the more aggressive coverages with his passing. Dončić and Anthony Edwards missed the second matchup, when Reaves was the best player on the floor with 28 points, 16 assists, and a game winner. Tonight, the Lakers will probably need both to replicate the deadly one-two punch we saw in the last game against the Knicks.

Dončić vs. Gobert is always the crucial matchup in any game with these two on the floor. The Frenchman is having another Defensive Player of the Year–caliber season, and the Timberwolves allow an astonishing 13.1 fewer points per 100 possessions when he is on the floor. That impact is even higher than that of his fellow countryman Victor Wembanyama. Defense that features Gobert, paired with another defensive specimen, Jaden McDaniels, is tough to crack. But Dončić, with his strength and on nights when his mid-range and outside shot are falling, is the player who has been able to force Finch into uncomfortable decisions on several occasions in the past.

With the addition of Luke Kennard, the Lakers now have the optionality to surround Dončić and Reaves with shooting, making their lives easier against one of the best paint-protecting defenses in the league.

Timberwolves on offense | Lakers on defense

How to deal with Anthony Edwards, who is having a career year with 29.6 points per game while shooting 41 percent from three, is always the most important item on the Timberwolves’ scouting report. The Lakers have had success in recent games with a proactive defensive approach, limiting players like Zion Williamson, Nikola Jokić, and Jalen Brunson, and they will need to muster that same urgency and force against the Ant-Man. Throwing different looks and help at him, and trying to turn him into more of a passer and playmaker, will probably be the plan.

The problem for JJ Redick is that Edwards is not the only threat. Julius Randle averaged 29.5 points in two games against the Lakers this season. He is shooting only 31 percent from three this year, but he made 8 of 15 against the team that drafted him. Besides Randle, all other key Timberwolves rotation players are having strong shooting seasons. Edwards is at 41 percent, McDaniels 43 percent, DiVincenzo 39 percent, Reid 38 percent, and Dosunmu 36 percent. That makes it one of the better three-point shooting rotations in the league, which makes helping on Edwards much more difficult, especially when Gobert is on the bench.

The key for the Lakers’ defense, like against any physical and athletic team, will be their offense. They need to limit turnovers and bad misses that allow the Timberwolves to get out in transition. Minnesota is the second-most efficient team in transition, according to Cleaning the Glass, and attacking the Lakers on the run is always a priority for them. The deadline addition of Ayo Dosunmu has made the Timberwolves even faster. He is currently their top scorer in fast-break points on a per-100-possessions basis.

Final thoughts

A good win against the Knicks took some pressure off the Lakers’ shoulders. Another quality win against a direct rival would prove that it wasn’t a fluke and that the Lakers might be more competitive than most of us thought. Let them prove us wrong again.

The last time the Lakers played the Timberwolves, AR called game 😈🔥pic.twitter.com/Q82X1nWhA2 https://t.co/FqkgULIVRq— Lakers All Day Everyday (@LADEig) March 10, 2026

THE LAKERS PLAY BASKETBALL TODAY!!!With a win, they will secure the season tiebreaker over Minnesota 🤝If the Rockets also lose, the Lakers will be the 3rd seed 👀 pic.twitter.com/6xdk9KMDgC— LakersMuse (@LALMuse) March 10, 2026

FROM ABOVE ARTICLE:

The 3-point shooting is suddenly dangerous in Los Angeles.

“Mid” would have been a kind way to describe the Los Angeles Lakers’ floor spacing and 3-point shooting before the arrival of Luke Kennard. It is crazy to see just how much one man can change the entire outlook of a given area for a team with his presence. The improvement has been drastic.

Before Kennard’s arrival, the Lakers were in the bottom half of the league when it comes to 3-point shooting. They were tied for 18th with the Memphis Grizzlies, Utah Jazz, and Detroit Pistons with a mark of 35.0 percent from beyond the arc. The caveat there being they shot the second-lowest volume of those four teams, only putting up 33.8 attempts per game.

Overall, that number had them bottom-10 in the NBA. The Lakers ranked 23rd in the league for 3-point attempts on average before Kennard suited up for Los Angeles. All of this makes the turnaround for the team something to marvel at.

On one hand, the number of shots going up in Los Angeles has not increased over the 14 games that Kennard has donned purple and gold. Their volume remains fairly similar. However, the success rate is vastly different. The Lakers are hitting 39.2 percent of their shots from deep over that span. That places them second in the NBA, only trailing the Charlotte Hornets (40.2) during that time.

Opposing teams are suddenly forced to guard the Lakers from 3-point land.

It’s not just Kennard who is doing all the work from downtown over the last 14 games. Quite frankly, his slice of the pie is not massive by any means.

Kennard only accounts for 3.4 attempts per game of the Lakers’ total 33.0 opportunities taken from triple over this recent stretch. However, the veteran sharpshooter spaces the floor and opens up opportunities for his teammates in the process. Take Luka Doncic as a prime example of that.

Doncic has appeared in 10 of the last 14 games for the Lakers. The superstar guard also takes, by far, the most attempts from distance of anyone on the team. After struggling before the All-Star break, Luka has his magic back.

Doncic is connecting on 42.2 percent of his 10.9 attempts per game with the deep ball. The volume shot by the Lakers superstar ranks third in the NBA in the last 14 games. That efficiency is a game-changer, and Los Angeles is reaping the benefits of it.

The Lakers would love to keep having this type of success throughout the remainder of the season and into the NBA Playoffs. It would give them one less thing to worry about in a campaign that has a ton of question floating over their heads.