The Lakers hoped to benefit from the magic of Christmas, but above all they were offered a concrete wall. Houston won 119-96 at Crypto.com Arena, taking the game from the start and locking it down with their usual physical toughness. With Amen Thompson (26 points) and Kevin Durant (25 points, 9 assists) in charge, the Rockets stifle LA and leave with a victory without any real discussion.
The match is won where it hurts: at bounce. Houston finishes at 46 catches against 25 for the Lakers. Twenty-one possessions given away, goodbye and thank you and goodbye. When you get bent like that, you can take 10 shots from the parking lot, but you still chase the score all night. And Houston was clean: 54% shooting, 25 passes, a team that lives well, starts quickly, cuts, and above all finishes the actions with a secure ball.
In the role of executioners, Kevin Durant played the luxury metronome (25 points, 9 assists, 4/6 from distance), while Amen Thompson put continuous pressure shots (26 points, 12/19 shooting): one which punishes you on reading, the other which punishes you on impact.
Amen Thompson and Kevin Durant in the Rockets Christmas Day blowout win over the Lakers:
Amen: 26 PTS | 7 REB | 5 AST | 64.0 TS%
Durant: 25 PTS | 9 AST | 2 BLK | 77.2 TS% pic.twitter.com/2vzYzfTjBk
— Bradeaux (@BradeauxNBA) December 26, 2025
Add Alperen Sengun (14 points, 12 rebounds), Jabari Smith Jr. (16 points), Tari Eason as pickpocket (4 interceptions, 2 blocks), and you get a collective that looks like a team sure of its plan, even at Christmas, even in LA
On the Lakers side, it’s an evening where “we try, but we endure”. Luka Doncic finished with 25 points, 7 assists, 5 rebounds, LeBron put up 18, but behind that there was a lack of relays, and above all there was a lack of meat when closing the racket and finishing possessions. Rui Hachimura seemed not to have digested his Yule log (0 points at 0/6 shooting), Deandre Ayton scored 10 points… for 2 rebounds (ouch), and the evening changed definitively when Austin Reaves did not return after half-time, hampered in his left calf (12 points in 15 minutes before leaving). Houston didn’t even need a perfect game: just a serious, physical game, and without gifts.
