It wasn’t the three-ball that condemned the Lakers – the Rockets only made 14 threes on the night.
It was swiftness and penetration: Houston guards walked into the lane all night and took down the Lakers defense. James Harden and Russell Westbrook got to where they wanted to be on the pitch and joined for 30 points in the paint alone. The Lakers defense was caught off guard and communication was poor.
“There is no way to simulate that speed,” LeBron James said after the game.
The Rockets, carrying the energy of a seven-game streak with them to the next round, rolled the Lakers late and fled to a 112-97 win. Houston now leads the 1-0 series with Game 2 on Sunday.
A look at the Rockets hit chart for the game – and how often they got into the paint – summarizes the Lakers’ problems.
The Lakers’ problems weren’t all on one side.
The Lakers have not been a good or consistent shooting team all season, while the little Rockets have been better defensive than expected on the bubble. The result of this was the Rockets who held the Lakers at 42.2% of the overall shots and 28.9% from three.
“In the second half, [our] the defense was perfect, “Houston manager Mike D’Antoni said after the game.” We made them work for every shot, every point, and that’s what we want to do. That and keep them out of transition. “
The Rockets also forced 15 turnovers, many of them live ball, which allowed the Rockets to come out in transition and convert those turnovers into 27 points.
Harden was hot at the start and was 25 of his 36 in the first half. Westbrook finished with 24 points, Eric Gordon with 23.
Anthony Davis, who tore Portland last round and was poised for a major streak against the undersized Rockets, had 26 out of 10 out of 16 points but didn’t dominate the Rockets on the inside. LeBron had 20 points and possibly the bubble dunk so far.
Too many people look at the little rockets and think that teams should just challenge them in the 90s, mistreat them inside, and handle old school postups. It doesn’t work – PJ Tucker is a strong post defender. As is Harden. The Rockets do not allow long passes into the pole, they eliminate them. Teams must match the Rockets and have movement to thrive on the inside, the Lakers were flat and watched the whole game.
The Lakers have got Rajon Rondo back and one of Frank Vogels’ big mistakes was getting him back into lineup for heavy minutes. He shot 3 out of 9, had as many turnovers as assists and was repeatedly set on fire in defense. Vogel stayed with him. Vogel performed a lot of formations that didn’t work out.
The Lakers lost Game 1 to Portland and bounced back to wipe out the rest of the series. A game only means a game. But the Lakers will have to make changes – and just shoot better – because the Rockets know who they are and are playing confidently.
