Slovenian star Luka Doncic just missed the triple-double with 31 points, 12 rebounds, and nine assists, and the Lakers fought back to even their series with Minnesota with a 94-85 victory.
“We looked at what we didn’t do so well, which is a lot of things in Game 1,” said James, who scored 21 points and made a key steal in the fourth quarter. “We took it to heart, held each other accountable and had a much better result.”
Austin Reaves added 16 for the third-seeded Lakers, who jumped out to an early 22-point lead and hung on through a physical matchup with sixth-seeded Minnesota.
Julius Randle scored 27 points, and Anthony Edwards scored 25, as well, for the Timberwolves.
In Oklahoma City, Shai Gilgeous-Alexander scored 27 points, and the Thunder dominated the Memphis Grizzlies 118-99 to take a 2-0 lead in their first-round playoff series.
Spaniard Santi Aldama scored 10 points and five rebounds off the bench for Memphis, which once again couldn’t compete against a superior team.
In the East, Pascal Siakam had 24 points, 11 rebounds, and a crucial 3-pointer to start Indiana’s decisive final run, while Tyrese Haliburton added 21 points and 12 assists to lead the Indiana Pacers past the Milwaukee Bucks 123-115 for a 2-0 series lead.
Bucks guard Damian Lillard had 14 points in his first game back from deep vein thrombosis in his right calf.
Bobby Portis Jr. added 28 points, including six 3s, and 12 rebounds for Milwaukee.
