The Los Angeles Lakers rested just about all of their regular rotation players on Sunday for their final regular-season game of the 2024-25 campaign and lost 109-81 to the Portland Trail Blazers. But that game wasn't the main concern for their fan base.
Many were paying plenty of attention to another NBA contest that took place in Northern California. The Golden State Warriors hosted the Los Angeles Clippers in a matchup that had immense playoff implications, not only for both teams but for the rest of the Western Conference.
The Clippers outlasted Golden State, 124-119, in overtime, and with that, every single seed and playoff matchup is set. With an assist from the Clippers, the third-seeded Lakers will take on the sixth-place Minnesota Timberwolves in the first round of the playoffs.
The No. 3 Los Angeles Lakers will face the No. 6 Minnesota Timberwolves in the first round of the playoffs.
— Jovan Buha (@jovanbuha) April 13, 2025
This is close to an ideal situation for the Lakers, at least as far as the first round is concerned. Minnesota is a team they should be able to defeat without too much trouble, as it has taken a tumble since finishing third in the West and reaching the conference finals last year.
At the same time, the Timberwolves aren't a pushover either. They finished the regular season eighth in offensive rating and seventh in defensive rating, and they have superstar guard Anthony Edwards, a dangerous player who is capable of winning games by himself.
If the Lakers get past Minnesota, there is a chance they will also have home-court advantage in the second round. There, they would face the winner of the first-round matchup between the Houston Rockets and the seventh seed, and the seventh seed will be determined by the play-in tournament this coming week.
A team such as the Golden State Warriors or Memphis Grizzlies could end up getting the seventh seed, and either team would be capable of knocking off Houston in the first round.
This article originally appeared on LeBron Wire: The Lakers' first-round playoff opponent is set
