Spooky parallel. The last time the Rockets beat LA in the playoffs was in 1996. They were the 5th seed, knocked off Magic and the Lakers, and were then swept by the 64-18 Seattle SuperSonics in the second round. This year, the Rockets are the 5th seed, are facing the 4th seed Lakers, and if they beat them, they'd (barring a shocking upset) face the 64-18 Thunder(the former SuperSonics) in the second round.
No, I just think we matchup well with them. I also think Sengun, Amen and Jabari will step up in the playoffs. If we beat Okc, the hype/energy will be extraordinary, that we can't lose afterwards
Ron Artest vs Kobe too. That was our year and the Basketball Gods took it away with their ****ing injuries. Every ******* time.
yea. Makes no sense lol. Spurs played all their starters except for Wemby the whole game against Denver third stringers. They just choked.
https://www.nba.com/news/2026-nba-playoffs-series-preview-lakers-rockets • James played just five games with neither Dončić nor Reaves, but he averaged 25.5 points (on 56% shooting) in less than 30 minutes over his four games in the last eight days of the season, one of which was a 28-point win over Phoenix. The Lakers have also outscored their opponents by 11 points per 100 possessions in James’ 528 total minutes on the floor without the other two. Still, moving Luke Kennard and Rui Hachimura into the starting lineup damages the Lakers’ depth. And of the two teams, the Rockets have had the higher-ranked bench. • Keep your eyes on late-clock execution. The Rockets ranked 29th in pace, in part because they led the league in offensive rebounding percentage, but also because they were one of the slowest teams to get the ball across midcourt. They took 24% of their shots, the league’s second highest rate, in the last six seconds of the shot clock. The Rockets had three of the top 10 guys in regard to total field goal attempts in the last four seconds. Pace almost always slows down in the playoffs, so that rate could rise. The Rockets have one of the best late-clock operators in NBA history, but they were in the middle of the pack in regard to effective field goal percentage in the last six seconds of the clock (46.9%). Their late-clock execution and shot-making should continue to be critical over the next two weeks. • For L.A.: Rui Hachimura saw his role reduced in the second half of the season, moving to the bench to make way for the return of Reaves from an extended absence. But the seventh-year forward was back in the starting lineup for the last five games, and he’s had another efficient scoring season. He shot 54.5% on pull-up 2-pointers, the second best mark among 96 players who attempted at least 100. • For Houston: The Rockets were outscored by 29 points (21.9 per 100 possessions) in Sheppard’s 78 minutes on the floor against the Lakers this season. Sheppard shot just 5-for-18 (28%) from 3-point range over the three games, and the Rockets’ numbers were bad on both ends of the floor in those 78 minutes. If those numbers aren’t better in this series, the Rockets won’t be playing another one. • One key number to know: 15.7 – The Rockets committed 15.7 turnovers per 100 possessions in the regular season. That was the league’s fourth highest rate and up from 14.0 (11th lowest) last season. Houston’s ability (or inability) to take care of the ball in this series could be extra critical. If Dončić and Reaves are either limited or unavailable, L.A.’s best chance at generating good shots will be in transition. The Lakers led the league in field goal percentage in the paint (63.0%) by a wide margin and Houston will have an easier time of keeping them out of the paint if its defense is set. The Lakers were in the middle of the pack in steals per 100 possessions, but they may want to apply extra pressure given the Rockets’ lack of a point guard. • The pick: ROCKETS in 5. The Rockets would be a legit pick to win this series if the Lakers were healthy. Statistically, Houston has been the much better team, outscoring opponents by 5.4 points per 100 possessions, the league’s sixth best mark and more than three times better than the Lakers’ differential (plus-1.5 per 100). It’s a very similar situation as last year, when the Lakers were the 3 seed and lost to the sixth-seeded Minnesota Timberwolves, who had the much better point differential in the regular season (plus-5.0 vs. plus-1.2 per 100 possessions). With the status of Dončić and Reaves in doubt, it becomes a much easier pick. Houston has multiple defenders to keep James somewhat in check, but the Lakers could struggle to stop both Durant and Sengun.
Best case scenario. Even healthy I think we can beat these guys. They tend to play lazy and can be out worked. With the injury, I like our chances
Wah, wah! OK City looms. Oh woe is us. Whatever will we do? Well, the first thing to do is beat LA. Sack up folks. You play the games in front of you and you can never predict how things turn out, including playoff injuries.
