LOS ANGELES – After defeating the third-seeded Los Angeles Lakers to advance to the second round of the playoffs on Wednesday night, Timberwolves guard Anthony Edwards made a loud entrance into his postgame press conference, shouting, “Ant-Man, Superman, Lakers in five.”
Edwards was taking a jab at critics who had predicted the Lakers would dispatch the Timberwolves in five games. Instead, Minnesota flipped the script, winning the series 4-1 with a 103-96 victory on the Lakers’ home court. The win marked a historic milestone for the franchise — their first time ever winning back-to-back first-round playoff series.
“What makes it even sweeter is they said ‘Lakers in five,’ and the Wolves won it in five,” Edwards said. “That makes it feel 10 times better.”
He added, “It means a lot. I mean, we beat the best player in the world — the best player ever.”
Despite being the underdogs, the Timberwolves outperformed expectations. The Lakers were considered strong favorites after acquiring star guard Luka Dončić in a February trade, a move that bolstered their championship aspirations. Heading into the playoffs, the Lakers held the third-best odds to win the NBA Finals (+1300), while the sixth-seeded Timberwolves were further down the list at ninth (+4000), according to ESPN BET.