“Luka Doncic Must Lead Lakers to Mount Comeback”: Lakers Announce Surprising Injury Update Before Game 5 as JJ Redick  Sends Blunt Message of ‘Desperation’ to Lakers Ahead….

The Los Angeles Lakers are on the brink of elimination just four games into their first-ever playoff series with Luka Doncic as a member of the team.

L.A. fell to the No. 6 seed Minnesota Timberwolves by three points in Game 4 in Minneapolis on Monday night, dropping into a 3-1 deficit in the best-of-seven first-round series. The Lakers made some questionable decisions in that contest, namely head coach JJ Redick deciding to play the same five players every second of the final two quarters, which was likely partially responsible for the team tiring out down the stretch and blowing a 10-point lead heading into the final stanza.

Los Angeles was also subject to a crucial missed call near the end of the game, after Jaden McDaniels of the Timberwolves tripped Doncic near half court with 35 seconds remaining and the Lakers trailing by one point. The NBA acknowledged the officiating mistake publicly in the official final two-minute report, which the league released postgame. Doncic would have gone to the free throw line with a chance to put L.A. ahead had the referee made the correct call.

But bad decisions and bad officiating aside, the game tally is what it is, and the Lakers have no choice but to win three times in a row — a tall order for the older, less athletic team in the series with a roster not built to optimize its best player in Doncic. Redick sent a message to his team to that end via a media session on Tuesday, April 29.

“I would describe us as ‘on edge’, as we should be,” Redick said, per Mike Trudell of Spectrum. “We have to play with a sense of desperation.”

Lakers Failed to Capitalize on 2 Exceptional Games From LeBron James in Minnesota

Los Angeles will have to lean on Doncic and fellow star LeBron James if the team has any hope of salvaging its postseason, which will begin with forcing a Game 6 by winning at Crypto.com Arena on Wednesday night.

James has averaged 26.3 points, 9.5 rebounds and 5.5 assists across the first four games of the series, though he ratcheted up his performance over the past two contests in Minnesota.

He put up 38 points, 10 rebounds and 4 assists in a Game 3 loss that was close until the final couple of minutes, at which point the Timberwolves pulled away and ended up winning by 12. Doncic played that game with an illness. As such, it ended up his least effective performance of the series.

James put up 38 points, 12 rebounds, 8 assists, 3 blocks and 3 steals in the Lakers’ Game 4 defeat, making several crucial defensive plays down the stretch. However, James also committed a costly turnover following the missed foul call on Doncic in the final seconds. He threw the basketball to the Timberwolves on the ensuring in-bounds play, which was a massive mistake that contributed meaningfully to the loss.

Luka Doncic Must Lead Lakers if They Hope to Mount Comeback Against Timberwolves

James is nearing the end of his 22nd professional season and turned 40 years old back in December 2024. Despite the fact that he is likely to make an All-NBA team yet again this season, the Lakers can only lean on him for so much at this point in his career.

That L.A. lost both games in Minnesota despite how well James played doesn’t bode well for the ultimate outcome of the series. So, as important as James is to the team’s success, it may need to be Doncic who carries them into Round 2 against the winner of the first-round matchup between the Golden State Warriors and Houston Rockets, which the Dubs’ currently lead 3-1.

Doncic has averaged 30.8 points, 7 rebounds and 5 assists over the first four games, scoring more than 30 in three of the four contests.