There might have been some reasons for worry for the Lakers in a series they once led 3-0. None of them were apparent on Friday.
With a 98-76 victory in Game 6, the Lakers finished off the Houston Rockets for their first playoff series win in three years. Their reward will be a date with the top-seeded Oklahoma City Thunder in the Western Conference semifinals.
That series will start on Tuesday.
The Lakers were coming off two straight losses at the hands of the Rockets, pushing them halfway to an unprecedented collapse. Game 4 was a one-sided defeat on the road, Game 5 was close but no victory cigar. Had it not been for the Rockets’ galling collapse in Game 3, Los Angeles would have been the ones facing elimination Friday.
Game 6 had no such headache. The Lakers took a double-digit lead early in the second quarter and never let it get back down to single digits. They still didn’t have their usual offense with Luka Dončić still out, but LeBron James kept doing what he’s done all series, turn back the clock.
The NBA’s all-time scoring leader finished with 28 points on 10-of-25 shooting, 8 assists, 7 rebounds and 3 turnovers, while Dončić had his fun from the bench.
LeBron hits the 3 & Luka signals that the Rockets should call a timeout. 🤣💀 pic.twitter.com/1SD3rNGPcQ
— Hoop Central (@TheHoopCentral) May 2, 2026
Rui Hachimura (21 points) and Austin Reaves (15) were the only other Lakers players to score in double digits, but Deandre Ayton did have a huge game on the boards with 7 points and 16 rebounds.
The Lakers were short-handed throughout this series, but the Rockets felt the absence of Kevin Durant — still out with an ankle injury — even more. They shot only 31.5% as a team before the Lakers pulled their starters, and should be very grateful to the Orlando Magic for drawing away attention from their offensive woes.
Lakers hoping to reverse recent history vs. Thunder
Reaching the second round of the playoffs despite missing their MVP candidate in Dončić for the entire series and their No. 2 player by points per game in Reaves is an impressive achievement for the Lakers, even given the absence of Kevin Durant for Houston.
The next round will be a different beast.
The 2025-26 Rockets had their limitations at the best of times. The Thunder have lost a single game with their actual starters since March 1. And they’ve steamrolled the Lakers at every opportunity.
Here are the Lakers’ four games against the Rockets this season.
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Nov. 12: 121-92 Thunder
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Feb. 9: 119-110 Thunder
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April 2: 139-96 Thunder
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April 7: 123-87 Thunder
The Lakers were missing at least one member of their big 3 for at least a part of each game, but that’s still an 0-4 record against the defending champions, with an average scoring margin of 29.3 points.
There’s no telling when Dončić will return from his Grade 2 hamstring strain, but OKC was still an unsolvable problem for the Lakers with him on the court. If the Lakers are going to reach the Western Conference finals for the first time since 2023, they are going to need the biggest upset of the playoffs.