Once the final buzzer sounded, the Los Angeles Lakers could finally exhale.
They discarded the Houston Rockets with a 98-78 win on Friday in a decisive Game 6 of their first-round playoff series. They also avoided the remote possibility of becoming the first team in NBA history to squander a 3-0 series lead.
Their 41-year-old superstar, LeBron James, showed once again that he can pause Father Time with another balanced game with 28 points, eight assists and competitive intensity. Their rising star, Austin Reaves, looked more refreshed in his second game since staying sidelined for nearly 3 ½ weeks with a Grade 2 left oblique strain. Their role players made defensive stops (Marcus Smart, Deandre Ayton) and 3s (Smart, Rui Hachimura).
The Lakers have reasons to feel better with closing out this series in six games after nearly squandering a 3-1 series lead with two consecutive contests losses. The Lakers should feel more concerned, however, on what awaits them.
How the Lakers disbanded the Rockets does not foreshadow how they will fare against the Oklahoma City Thunder. Instead, it just confirms the Lakers will fall early against the NBA’s defending champions.
The Rockets’ young roster initially struggled playing with and without star Kevin Durant, who missed Game 1 with a right knee contusion and the past four contests with a sprained left ankle. Houston sorely missed point-guard leadership (Fred VanVleet) and additional defensive physicality (Steven Adams). The Thunder have enough depth and continuity that it appears unlikely they will miss Jaylen Williams should he stay sidelined with a strained left hamstring.
The Rockets’ premier players in Alperen Şengün, Amen Thompson and Jabari Smith Jr. struggled initially to shoot consistently against the Lakers. Their confidence and execution grew throughout the series, which illustrates the Lakers have less margin for error against OKC. The Thunder’s core players in Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, Chet Holmgren and Ajay Mitchell all perform efficiently. Houston squandered Game 3 because of late-game miscues that only youth teams make. The Thunder secured the No. 1 seed for three consecutive seasons because they remain fundamentally sound.
Unsurprisingly, the Lakers may view their chances differently.
They won’t proclaim themselves the better team than the Thunder as Smith did even when the Rockets faced elimination against the Lakers. “That’s a championship team right there. We’re not,” James said about OKC after the Lakers’ second regular-season loss to them three months ago. Since then, the Lakers have improved drastically.
Amid their various ups-and-downs, the Lakers still won a playoff series without star Luka Dončić while nursing a Grade 2 left hamstring strain for the past 3 1/2 weeks. The Lakers haven’t offered a definitive timetable for his return, but Dončić could advance to team practices and play in a postseason game, soon. Once the Lakers’ medical staff clears him, Dončić will likely pick up right where he left off as the NBA’s best scorer.
The Lakers also didn’t beat the Rockets just because of their self-inflicted wounds. The Lakers earned their first playoff series win since 2023. Without Dončić and Reaves, James and the Lakers’ role players all elevated their play. James naturally became the team leader again, but did so without overly dominating the team’s offense. Kennard, Smart, Ayton and Hachimura all made key shots through the series. All of them defended at a high-level, too. Even with home-court advantage, few envisioned the fourth-seeded Lakers could discard the Rockets in the first round.
Nonetheless, the Lakers struggled to sustain those strong returns against the Rockets. With Game 1 starting on Tuesday in Oklahoma City, the Lakers have some time to rest and prepare. Different story afterwards. They only have two days in between games through Game 5. The Lakers’ chances slightly improve once Dončić returns. But the Lakers shouldn’t get their hopes up just because the NBA’s leading scorer might play soon. The Lakers plan to evaluate Dončić soon after he has completed individual drills, but he may not progress enough to return for Game 1. Even with Dončić, however, the Lakers have appeared overwhelmed.
The Lakers lost all four-regular season matchups against the Thunder by an average of 31.75 points per game. The Lakers nursed key injuries in the first game (James), second game (Dončić) and fourth (Dončić, Reaves). Consider these caveats, though. The Thunder also sat Gilgeous-Alexander in the final matchup. Before Dončić and Reaves suffered their injuries in the second half on April 2, the Lakers already faced a 31-point first-half deficit.
Even at full-strength, the Lakers have not seriously threatened OKC. After sweeping the Phoenix Suns, the Thunder haven’t shown any major weaknesses. They have too many scoring options. They have plenty of wings that can disrupt the Lakers’ stars. They have the personnel to play both big and small lineups.
The Lakers also beat the Rockets in six games partly because they faced an opponent that didn’t initially penalize them for their miscues. That only happened later in the series. The Lakers struggled with turnovers and offensive rebounding all series despite pinning those two areas beforehand as the most important. The Lakers only won Game 3 after taking advantage of the Rockets’ terrible late-game execution. The Lakers escaped with a Game 6 despite continuing to struggle with their turnovers and rebounding.
Therefore, the Lakers shouldn’t kid themselves. They didn’t play a complete playoff series. They still have question marks about their health with Dončić’s return and James’ durability. They have uncertainty about their role players’ consistency. They have less margin for error against a Thunder team that will exploit any mistake with far greater efficiency than the Rockets ever could.
At least Dončić can play meaningful basketball. At least Reaves can prove his worth entering a contract year. At least James can enjoy a less strenuous workload. At least both sides can receive clarity on if it makes practical and economic sense for James to return on a reduced role and pay rate. At least the Lakers have more time to evaluate Hachimura, Kennard and Jaxson Hayes before they become free agents in July.
That won’t change the outcome, though. After avoiding a first-round playoff embarrassment, the Lakers played in dominant fashion. They also just scheduled an appointment for a short second-round series. The Lakers deserve credit for growing gradually throughout the season with a young star, an old star (James) and a rising star (Reaves) along with decent role players. They’ll soon learn once against the Thunder, however, that they lack enough depth and continuity to mirror OKC as a championship team.
This article was originally published on Forbes.com
