The playoff picture is set, and there is no longer any ambiguity surrounding the Los Angeles Lakers or the first step of their path to potentially a historic 30th NBA Finals appearance.
Los Angeles locked up the No. 3 seed in the Western Conference with a home victory over the Houston Rockets in game 81 of 82, rendering the final contest of the campaign in Portland against the Trail Blazers on Sunday, April 13, essentially meaningless.
The Lakers lost that game, finishing the year with a record 50-32 as well as home-court advantage guaranteed in the first round of the playoffs.
The rest of the crowded West played itself out Sunday, with the Minnesota Timberwolves capturing the No. 6 seed and setting up a first-round matchup with the Lakers. Several hours later, the league office announced the schedule for the opening weekend of the postseason.
— Dan Woike (@DanWoikeSports) April 14, 2025
The Lakers will host the Timberwolves in L.A. for Game 1 on Saturday night, April 19th. The contest will air on ABC at 8:30 p.m. ET, which translates to 5:30 p.m. PST. It will be the final of four games on the first day of the NBA playoffs.
The Nos. 1-8 and 2-7 matchups in both conferences will take place on Sunday, April 20. The reasoning behind that decision is that the Nos. 7 and 8 seeds in both the West and East will be decided over the previous week, during the Play-In Tournament.
Los Angeles opened its preseason slate against Minnesota and played the Timberwolves in the first game of the regular season as well. The Lakers went 2-2 in their four matchups with the Timberwolves during the 2024-25 campaign.
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