NBA: Giant Rudy Gobert and Minnesota eliminate LeBron James' Lakers

Winning 103-96, the Timberwolves won the series 4-1 and will challenge either the Golden State Warriors or the Houston Rockets in the conference semifinals.

The Lakers' season ended just as it had begun, in their Crypto.com Arena in the Californian metropolis's financial district, against Minnesota. On October 22, the mood was celebratory when LeBron James made history once again by becoming the first father-son duo on the same NBA court with his son Bronny.

Six months later, the "King" has reached forty and his offspring, after a very discreet first season, has not entered the game, he who will have accumulated less than 4 minutes over the 5 matches of the series, confirming his status as a complementary player in a squad which nevertheless appeared light in the final phase.

After raising the hopes of their fans with their third-place finish in the Western Conference during the regular season, the Lakers disappointed in the playoffs with an early and uneventful elimination, losing two of their three home games.

In his first season at the helm of the team, coach JJ Redick was unable to do better than his predecessor Darvin Ham, who left at the same stage last year.

The Lakers seemed to pay for the lack of depth in their roster, which was shaken up in February with the arrival of Slovenian magician Luka Doncic , in exchange for All-Star center Anthony Davis.

LeBron James has one year left on his contract

Doncic was still important (28 points, 7 rebounds, 9 assists) but the collective of the Californian franchise was particularly feverish on Wednesday, remaining in the race for a long time in the game thanks to the only terrible clumsiness of the Timberwolves (7 of 47 from long range at 14.9%).

King LeBron James (22 points, 7 rebounds, 6 assists) completed his 22nd NBA season at the age of 40. Last summer, he signed a new two-year contract estimated at $100 million with the Los Angeles Lakers, with the second year ($52 million) remaining at his discretion.

The orange ball superstar, who was taken off a few minutes after contact in the fourth quarter, never gave any indication during the season that he could retire in 2025.

On Wednesday, the Lakers were unable to contain Rudy Gobert, who was fantastic with 27 points and 24 rebounds, his playoff records.

The French center delivered nearly ten powerful dunks, encouraging himself each time by flexing his muscles, keeping his team afloat in an ocean of clumsiness.

The results of the night: Western Conference

Match N.5, LA Lakers - Minnesota 96 – 103

Minnesota qualified, winning 4-1

Game 5, Houston - Golden State 131 – 116 Golden State leads 3 to 2. Game 6 on 02/05

Already qualified: Oklahoma City, winner of Memphis 4-0Cleveland, winner of Miami 4-0Boston, winner of Orlando 4-1

Indiana, winner of Milwaukee 4 to 1

Other ongoing series: Denver - LA Clippers, Denver leads 3 to 2

New York - Detroit, New York leads 3 to 2