ClutchFans Game Thread: Rockets @ Lakers 4/18/2026 (Playoffs Round 1, Game 1)

What a pathetic effort that was. They looked like they couldn't be ****ed playing. Do they even want to be in the playoffs?

 

Not mad as I expected this to happen. No this game was not rigged, no KD was not paid off to sit and yes, our team is not very good. However, coaching and having any sort of offense would go a long way. Look at how when suddenly Tari gets the ball and actually is in a position to shoot, he scores. He didn't see those opportunities at all in the 1st half. We had Reed and Jabari forcing shots up, I love you Tate but you're too short and too hyper to make any kind of shot, Sengun needs to get in the room with Scola as he's not using his strengths enough and Amen should be in the dunker spot, not shoot freaking threes. Also Jabari still cannot dribble and we all loose the ball due to butter fingers.

But I could even argue it's not lost on offense, because our defensive gameplan and execution were BAD. Kennard wide open on most of his shots, odd double-times on random nobodies and then let Aaron Holiday get cooked by Lebron on several possessions and just straight up 1-on-1 all night long. Then when things get chippy we suddenly commit dumb fouls instead of just bodying up, our coach gets into petty stuff with refs and starts to curse and smile like a little baby and we lost the game right there. Not taking Tate out who was hot and not doing much was dumb. Not playing Jeff Green when we needed 3pt shooting, again, dumb. Our coaching is amateurism at its best.

Glad we got embarrassed and Barkley saying it. This team was built for the 97-07 era of low 90s scores with our non-shooters, terrible ball handling and no threes mentality. I do think Tari and Amen played decent games, Reed was alright, Sengun had his moments and Jabari as well early on. Okogie definitely showed up and embarrassed the rest of our team with their "effort." Let's see if they will learn, but it's very telling that even their worst shooters have a better chance at making a shot than 90% of ours.

 

It is what is, they need Sengün and Amen to consistently score in the high 20s to beat this Lukaless Lakers team without a proper bench.

 

If you're defending the Rockets, especially without Durant, you pack the paint. That’s the whole game plan. Ime will adjust by leaning into more defensive juggernauts who aren’t shooters, which only reinforces that same simple strategy.

 

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I saw this quote and mentioned it last night- how many people here believe it's actually true?

Like, without any insider knowledge and only a layman understanding - I can show you the pbp on NBA.com with videos that prove Charles is factually incorrect in his assessment - like he doesn't even watch

 

Just went down 0-1 to Luke kennard. End the season already - good fans don’t deserve this circus.

 

We deserve to at least see accountability. This bs is simply unacceptable.

 

I don't think it even matters because Inside the NBA is just a show simplifying things for the audience, Barkley draws his experience from playing, albeit a different era. He doesn't need watching in his mind.

The Rockets are just bad at execution, the other thing is just details u, me, Inside the NBA broadcast disagree on....

Everyone can see that the Rockets lost to a depleted Lakers team, without leading with a big lead.....

 

I know but it's so obviously wrong - does anybody here think the Rockets played "whoever gets it shoots it" or "just 1 on 1" last night?

For example just looking at the box score, Sheppard, Sengun, Thompson had 21 combined assists despite a poor shooting night by the Rockets. How does this square with this assessment?

These things are just wrong - nothing more to say

 

JJ Redick can design a functional offense around LBJ + 4 scrubs and Ime cant around 3 Top 4 picks and a Euro All Star. Reed Sheppard by himself is more talented than anyone on the Lakers not named LeBron.

Also great job Stone on not picking up another shooter. The Josh Okogie/Jaesean Tate/Tari Eason experience is scintillating. What's crazy is that I don't think this will look that different with KD out there. He's just going to mask the very very obvious problem we have.

 

Obviously u have multiple bodies, it cannot be literal 1 on 1... although sometimes they are traffic cones.

The fact that the Rockets were forcing shots up reminded u of amateurish 1 on 1 ball, the Lakers moved the ball really well most of the time, Lebron distributed very well and showcased why his playmaking is superior to KD's.

Kennard shot well etc. ..

It also looked like players stuck on players and could not get themselves free and open.

 

Luke Kennard provides a jolt of Luka magic, helping the Lakers beat the Rockets

https://sports.yahoo.com/articles/luke-kennard-provides-jolt-luka-110000172.html

 

the only one who plays “whoever gets it shoots it” is Reed Sheppard and occasionally Jabari when he’s trying to do too much

the Rockets do play one-on-one basketball, or at least, there’s very little movement on offense

Ime is not a good offensive coach whatsoever, but I can’t recall many offenses looking competent without a PG…even Mike D’Antoni looked lost if he didn’t have a good PG

Reed Sheppard and Amen running point is a joke…”Senhub” is a joke, and it’s hilarious that people sit on here advocating for it…KD trying to initiate is a joke too because that’s not his game

the Rockets are cooked in a halfcourt setting

 

clown show blow it up

 

That's not what it was though.

The Rockets probably ran fewer isolation last night than they have all season (NBA has not uploaded the play type data). They passed a lot, lots of movement - people who say this are just wrong.

The Rockets players are not very good. I don't even like Ime but the players are not that good - it doesn't matter what he does - no coach is going to fix a team built around an ultra flawed player like Sengun

 

I watched the game and they run a lot but they mostly run into a Lakers wall although the Lakers wall was not OKC wall solid.

I meant their passes mostly went to Amen and Sengun missing layups or hook shots, and there was already 1 or 2 Lakers in position, they either dribbled too long or the passes came too late.

And of course Shep Commander bricked from 3......those 3 had the most Shot attempts.

 

I love having a defensive genius of a coach that told Amen to play weak side help and leave Luke Kennard at every opportunity, instead of playing an All NBA first team D guy at the point of attack.

Defensive ****en genius

 

Well, I am not exerting myself to look at data of one of the worst losses......sure the Rockets staff should do their job.

Eye test is sufficient......and I really doubt that what you watched is great ball movement with a straight face when you experienced what great ball movement under Daigneault looks like.

Or what Off Ball movement under the 2015 Warriors looked like......

 

Ime's dumb starting lineup of Reed, Okogie, Amen, Jabari and Sengun had a net rating of -10.7 last night. I said that would happen before the game. It was a horrible lineup during the regular season (-9.9 net rating)...smh

Meanwhile, the lineup that we should have been spamming (Reed, Amen, Tari, Jabari, Sengun) had a net rating of +34.8 last night.

We lost this game before the tipoff just because of this dumb decision of the starting lineup.

 

This