“Shooting from Yucatan” - Anthony Edwards awed by LeBron James' stellar shooting display in blockbuster Game 3 duel 

Anthony Edwards and the Minnesota Timberwolves staved off a gallant stand from the LA Lakers in Game 3 to take a 2-1 lead in their first-round playoff series. Edwards put up 29 points, eight rebounds and eight assists to lead the Timberwolves in the crucial win on their home court.

Before securing the win, the Timberwolves had to survive a LeBron James rally in the fourth quarter. The NBA great pulled the Lakers to within striking distance down the stretch, draining three 3-pointers to carry the Lakers until Minnesota regained its groove and made the necessary stops to win the game.

After the game, Edwards was left in awe by James’ late-game explosion. He praised the NBA legend saying:

“He was incredible… he was shooting from Yucatan… he caught one of them in transition and I was like, he’s not about to shoot this, and he launched that, I’m not going to lie it was fun competing against him today,” he said in the post-game press conference.

James had 38 points on 13-of-21 shooting from the field, including five three-pointers to put the Lakers on his back, especially as his co-star Luka Doncic was nursing a stomach bug. It was also the most points scored by a 40-year-old in NBA playoffs history.

He also had 10 rebounds and four assists in 41 minutes of action, albeit for naught as they are still yet to get back the home-court advantage in the series after losing Game 1 in LA.

JJ Redick gives update on LeBron James’ injury status

Despite his superb performance in Game 3, LeBron James was still not 100 percent, nursing a hip injury he suffered late in the regular season against the Houston Rockets.

After the Game 3 loss, Lakers head coach JJ Redick shared a positive update on James’ injury status. As reported by Lakers beat writer Jovan Buha of The Athletic:

“JJ Redick said he thinks LeBron James is moving better each day and he needed about two weeks from his left hip flexor strain he suffered against Houston to begin looking more like himself," Buha reported on X.

Game 3 was the breakout performance of James as he scored 19 and 21 points respectively in the first two games of the series.

James is expected to carry more usage in Game 4 as the Lakers try to avoid conceding a 3-1 disadvantage to the Timberwolves in the seven-game series.