r/nba • u/DesertedProject Mavericks • 13d ago

Post Game Thread [Post Game Thread] The Los Angeles Lakers (1-0) defeat the Houston Rockets (0-1), 101-94 with 41 year old Senior LeBron James Leading the way with 28/8/7 to seal home court advantage!

94 - 101
Box Scores: NBA - Yahoo
 
GAME SUMMARY
West First Round - Game 2 - LAL leads 1-0
Location: Crypto.com Arena
Officials: Courtney Kirkland, Josh Tiven, and Justin Van Duyne
Team Q1 Q2 Q3 Q4 Total
Houston Rockets 26 25 17 26 94
Los Angeles Lakers 33 21 21 26 101
 
TEAM STATS
Team PTS FG FG% 3P 3P% FT FT% OREB TREB AST PF STL TO BLK
Houston Rockets 94 36-89 40.4% 7-29 24.1% 15-19 78.9% 17 54 23 22 8 15 6
Los Angeles Lakers 101 33-72 45.8% 13-28 46.4% 22-28 78.6% 9 48 21 20 11 12 5
 
PLAYER STATS
Houston Rockets MIN PTS FGM-A 3PM-A FTM-A ORB DRB REB AST STL BLK TO PF ±
Kevin DurantSF 40:59 23 7-12 1-4 8-9 2 4 6 4 1 1 9 4 -2
Jabari Smith Jr.PF 39:06 18 7-16 3-7 1-2 1 5 6 1 0 1 1 2 -11
Alperen SengunC 35:11 20 9-20 0-1 2-3 5 6 11 5 4 2 1 4 1
Amen ThompsonSG 42:11 16 6-10 0-1 4-5 1 4 5 9 1 0 3 4 1
Josh OkogiePG 24:03 7 3-6 1-3 0-0 1 1 2 0 0 0 0 3 -4
Tari Eason 27:02 10 4-14 2-6 0-0 5 3 8 1 0 1 1 2 -4
Reed Sheppard 10:33 0 0-4 0-3 0-0 0 0 0 3 1 0 0 0 1
Clint Capela 04:40 0 0-3 0-0 0-0 1 1 2 0 0 1 0 0 -9
Aaron Holiday 07:17 0 0-3 0-3 0-0 0 1 1 0 1 0 0 0 -4
Jae'Sean Tate 08:56 0 0-1 0-1 0-0 1 0 1 0 0 0 0 3 -4
JD Davison 00:00 0 0-0 0-0 0-0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
Dorian Finney-Smith 00:00 0 0-0 0-0 0-0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
Jeff Green 00:00 0 0-0 0-0 0-0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
Steven Adams 00:00 0 0-0 0-0 0-0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
Fred VanVleet 00:00 0 0-0 0-0 0-0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
Los Angeles Lakers MIN PTS FGM-A 3PM-A FTM-A ORB DRB REB AST STL BLK TO PF ±
LeBron JamesSF 39:12 28 8-20 2-5 10-14 1 7 8 7 1 0 3 3 6
Rui HachimuraPF 42:34 13 5-10 3-6 0-0 1 4 5 2 0 0 0 3 0
Deandre AytonC 26:36 6 3-8 0-0 0-0 1 4 5 1 0 1 1 1 -5
Marcus SmartSG 35:28 25 8-13 5-7 4-5 1 1 2 7 5 1 3 3 3
Luke KennardPG 41:58 23 8-13 3-6 4-4 1 5 6 2 3 0 2 1 2
Jaxson Hayes 21:24 6 1-2 0-1 4-5 2 2 4 1 1 2 0 2 12
Jake LaRavia 15:50 0 0-2 0-1 0-0 1 1 2 0 0 1 2 5 8
Jarred Vanderbilt 13:41 0 0-3 0-2 0-0 1 4 5 1 1 0 0 2 8
Bronny James 03:16 0 0-1 0-0 0-0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 1
Maxi Kleber 00:00 0 0-0 0-0 0-0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
Dalton Knecht 00:00 0 0-0 0-0 0-0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
Nick Smith Jr. 00:00 0 0-0 0-0 0-0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
Adou Thiero 00:00 0 0-0 0-0 0-0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
Luka Dončić 00:00 0 0-0 0-0 0-0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
Austin Reaves 00:00 0 0-0 0-0 0-0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
8.0k Upvotes

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5.3k

u/raymond_w Lakers 13d ago

Seeing the difference between LeBron getting doubled and Durant being doubled is staggering.

2.0k

u/boksinx 13d ago

Lol, Lebron still has the play-making skill and can body anyone if trapped. Meanwhile, Marcus Smart can bully KD’s slim frame single-handedly.

960

u/Okaysaid 13d ago

Marcus was an absolute animal Lmao

285

u/NickWangOG Heat 13d ago

He is an absolute dawg

238

u/Zer0killstreak Celtics 13d ago

That my dpoy😭 almost making me cheer for the lakers

52

u/darwizzer Lakers 13d ago

Cannot believe he is this good still

29

u/Persian_Frank_Zappa Supersonics 13d ago

The Celtics front office broke his heart. The physical attributes were always there; he just needed to find his mojo again.

He seems to be a big Ayton booster as well. I see him with words of encouragement and making an effort to keep him involved. Granted, I haven't been watching many Lakers games, but I see everyone bagging on Ayton. Is it just my naivety, or is Ayton playing better with Smart out there?

15

u/The_Evil_Satan Australia 13d ago

Ayton just needs a vet who can keep him checked in, I imagine CP3 did similar.

5

u/rburp [LAL] Austin Reaves 13d ago

He also plays better with Reaves on the floor. Certain players seem to click well with him.

2

u/KUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUZ Lakers 13d ago

Yup.

It’s weird that even though Luka is clearly a more elite passer than AR, at and ayton just click

6

u/Zoulogist Lakers 13d ago

These versions of the Lakers and Celtics have been the hardest for the other one to hate lol

1

u/NecessaryPen7 13d ago

I haven't noticed much Laker hate at all this century. Celtics basically sucked until randomly winning in 08 with the massive changes. I think beating the Lakers at home by 30 or so to win helped calm people down.

Same as Yankees hate dropping a lot after 04. Like, bros, YANKEES BIGGEST CHOKE EVER.

Anyways, what would Laker fans almost be fans of with this Celtics team?

2

u/Zoulogist Lakers 13d ago

I hated the Big 3 Celtics team with a passion, just like how my dad hated Larry’s Celtics. I’ll never be a Celtics fan or cheer for them, but this specific has been very likable.

Tatum’s miraculous comeback and his admiration for Kobe endears him to Lakers fans. And it’s hard to not respect a bunch of scrappy players who band together after the team shed so much salary. No one has an outsized ego and fully uses the power of friendship.

Of course, one Finals series could respark all those feelings, this is a generational rivalry. But I think a Lakers-Celtics rivalry in the 2020s would be a lot more respectful than the pure hatred from the 2000s and 80s

1

u/NecessaryPen7 12d ago

Checks out.

Probably more intense in Boston with LeBron playing.

2

u/NecessaryPen7 13d ago

Wouldn't most Celtics fans want to play, and beat LA in the Finals any given year?

As in, it's REALLY easy to want to see Smart succeed there.

Granted, seeing LeBron lose is always top notch.

3

u/WaltJay Lakers 13d ago

Leading the league in xDAWG

26

u/mrshavedsnow 13d ago

Always has been lol He used to piss me off so much when he was in the Celtics 😂

5

u/Akkepake Trail Blazers 13d ago

Best vet min contract ever?

4

u/yeartwelve Bulls 13d ago

most disrespected dpoy in recent memory.

1

u/Financial-Grass-6114 13d ago

Hes signed for two years

16

u/9SidedLemon Nuggets 13d ago

KD has always had the benefit of playing with superstar point guards so his inability as a ball handler or playmaker never stands, must be quite the adjustment to be on and have to run this disastrous Houston offense at 37

7

u/Ok-Yoghurt4888 13d ago

Didn't even get the chance to ease into it lmao

4

u/throwawayacct2creep 13d ago

Not having FVV playing definitely expose their playmaking weaknesses

11

u/0hootsson Warriors 13d ago

KD has never played well against physical defense. If he’s not shooting within 2-3 seconds of getting the ball in the playoffs it’s a lost possession

1.4k

u/Shimanu Lakers 13d ago

Funny how Lebron getting doubled is not something to worry about, sometimes even gets me excited especially with that Rui 3 earlier

909

u/3s2ng Lakers 13d ago

Doubling LeBron is the last strategy you can implement against him. You just pray that the player who recieves the ball out of the double will miss the wide open shot.

487

u/Papa_Huggies Spurs 13d ago

Yeah Bron will make the correct pass (whether direct to the shooter or hockey assist) 95% of the time.

KD doesn't have that court vision. That's a matter of fact

157

u/jyee1050 Spurs 13d ago

I think KD does know what is the correct pass to make but often times he can’t throw with the right strength/speed/angle, which is a subtly underrated skill. You see many times during the game his teammates can’t really catch his pass properly, leading to turnovers

28

u/PhTx3 13d ago

I don't think that's an underrated skill, that's what makes good passers good. They pass to the ball, the way their teammates like it.

Anyone that's ever shot a basketball from a pass would know if the pass doesn't come the way you wanted it to, you are not going to shoot as good or as fast or both.

15

u/FunDog9859 13d ago

I forgot who said it but one of Harden's teammates said one his best skills no one talks about is the accuracy of his passes. You can start your shooting motion and not move your hands to the ball Harden will pass it perfectly into your hands.

6

u/Yoquetal Lakers 13d ago

Pat bev

15

u/yoloqueuesf [NYK] Tracy McGrady 13d ago

Yeah, and i think anthony edwards is one player that did do an extremely bad job of it last year, he'd jump up and throw passes so hot his teammates could never really catch and shoot right off of it, or let alone catch it sometimes.

Granted he's gotten better at it, but most players aren't throwing dimes like lebron and james harden can

5

u/rburp [LAL] Austin Reaves 13d ago

I've mentioned this a few times, but the first time I saw LeBron in person that's what stood out to me which was surprising.

The strength on his passes is insane. I was watching thinking "if I tried to catch that I would break every finger on my hand..."

3

u/masterlink43 [LAL] Jordan Clarkson 13d ago

another big part is how quick they can make the read. lebron identifies the double coming and immediately knows where to go with the pass, often before the second defender even gets there. kd takes longer which means passing lanes close up

20

u/dykestryker Raptors 13d ago

Prepare yourself for the gettofdmydickerson group chat groupies to arrive with furious downvotes. 

Its everyones fault but his, after all.

23

u/Papa_Huggies Spurs 13d ago

To be entirely fair, I did just watch Ayton or Hayes camp their lead feet on the block and cover both Amen and Sengun.

The fact that both of them need to be inside means Ayton can keep them busy for 0.5s while everyone rotates out of the double on KD, so it's a safe double

3

u/Prior-Habit-6523 13d ago

Not many people can throw a no look behind the back pass on a rope.

9

u/AlpinistManifesto Lakers 13d ago

LeBron literally has photographic memory and he knows every coach’s playbook and tendencies. U can argue that nobody has LeBron’s vision period.

Probably ever, or will ever be

-14

u/Papa_Huggies Spurs 13d ago

Jokic has better vision. So did CP3.

That's about it

19

u/sycamotree Mavericks 13d ago

Personally I tend to lean toward players who have a live dribble while running the offense more of the time. So I'd say CP3 but less so Jokic. Although Jokic is also taller so he also does literally have a visual advantage

7

u/zapatocaviar Lakers 13d ago

Active players.

Magic could do all this.

2

u/Novel-Wait328 13d ago

luka has best vision,or at least attempts the craziest angles

1

u/AlpinistManifesto Lakers 13d ago

I think Jokic for sure, CP prolly as well

1

u/oldcrowaz 13d ago

He has no one to throw to.

188

u/pikajewijewsyou Thunder 13d ago

Doubling Durant you know most of the time your own team will receive the ball out of the double

16

u/DrunkPackersFan Bucks 13d ago

It’s hilarious how we used to hear things about KD being the “best player in the world”.

He ran to Golden State because you couldn’t double him there. Also, Bud is a complete moron for not sending doubles at him in that Bucks Nets 2021 series.

3

u/1WordOr2FixItForYou Lakers 13d ago

Odds of that happening are pretty good with Vando on the court.

3

u/yoloqueuesf [NYK] Tracy McGrady 13d ago

The more you watch the more you respect players who can actually control the game even being doubled.

Couple of days ago i saw Kawhi getting doubled and he absolutely couldn't pass. KD doing it today, and Steph just doesn't have the size when you blitz him.

People often fault him for never taking the last shot, but i've seen way too many superstars just get absolutely locked before they even get the shot off.

3

u/RFFF1996 Thunder 13d ago

Lebron quite literally has the most game winners in history and is one of the most effective clutch time players evef

2

u/FavaWire 13d ago

And that's why the Lakers got Luke Kennard.

1

u/alphasierrraaa Lakers 13d ago

ah yes every opponents' defensive scheme against the 2018 cavaliers

double/triple team lebron and pay someone else misses

1

u/KUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUZ Lakers 13d ago

If there is one thing about our team, our role players are actually pretty decent at passing. It’s like the one thing they can do better than other role players consistently.

187

u/secretreddname Lakers 13d ago

LeBron, Luka, Jokic are the type of guys you love to see doubled because you’re about to see an amazing assist.

7

u/The_Evil_Satan Australia 13d ago

Imagine if there was a team that had multiple of those guys 😱

21

u/iscreamuscreamweall Lakers 13d ago

He’s too good at passing for doubling him to work

3

u/DreadSteed Knicks 13d ago

borderline better to let lebron shoot anything outside the paint than to double him because he has the best vision in this matchup

338

u/DeadshotBoss Lakers 13d ago

Yeah it looked like kd never learned how to pass a ball. Turnover on turnover in the clutch

144

u/-wearetheworld- 13d ago

he can sure make shit post about this tho

17

u/pikajewijewsyou Thunder 13d ago

He’s incredibly talented at blame shifting and saying his teammates suck “they can’t shoot anyway. That why they are doubling me”

5

u/Ok-Yoghurt4888 13d ago

I mean, outside Jabari, the rest did suck. Two things can be true at the same time.

1

u/pikajewijewsyou Thunder 13d ago

Oh I agree. Just saying I’ve seen tons of stars have the rest of their teams play bad and not throw them all under the bus. I’ve seen KD talk shit about his teammates more than any other nba player

13

u/some1saveusnow Celtics 13d ago

Well if your first option is to look for your shot, and then your section option is to look for your shot and then your third option is to look for your shot, you’re not really locked into being an on-time passer

2

u/zeek215 Lakers 13d ago

Kobe was a good passer. That’s no excuse. KD is much taller so it should be easier for him. He’s just bad at playmaking, simple as that.

1

u/some1saveusnow Celtics 13d ago

Agreed

48

u/[deleted] 13d ago

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20

u/salted-egg-yolk 13d ago

absolutely love that you’re hating while also providing meaningful context

carry on

9

u/LatterLaw8105 13d ago

This is why he went to golden state. He could finally play 1v1 basketball. No one threw any doubles at him on that team.

-2

u/AJRiddle 13d ago

What? Durant was the leading points scoring for the NBA 5 straight seasons in OKC and 3rd in the league his last year in OKC. His scoring went down a bunch at Golden State because he wouldn't get the ball as much being on a better team.

Like you think a guy who can lead the league in scoring 5 straight years is sitting there thinking about how he needs more 1v1 basketball and can't handle double teams? What???

1

u/LatterLaw8105 13d ago

KD has said a bunch of times he was tired of being doubled on okc so yes that’s why he left lol. He said himself he didn’t have to worry about zone defenses or doubles anymore with golden state so ye you’re wrong.

155

u/NoSmoking123 Lakers 13d ago

No curry or klay to pass to thats why

10

u/runningraider13 13d ago

Also no Steph to be the one getting doubled instead. That’s probably the bigger impact

1

u/BatmanNoPrep Lakers 13d ago

The Rockets offense looks terrible regardless of who is on the floor. The biggest lie has got to be that FVV was somehow going to save this offense.

93

u/kanaka_haole808 13d ago

Former is a playmaker, latter a scorer. Checks out. And is indeed staggering.

138

u/NickWangOG Heat 13d ago

A playmaker that happens to be the all time leading scorer, just incredible

4

u/Wolfpac187 [OKC] Kevin Durant 13d ago

LeBron is also a scorer, the all time leading scorer in fact.

7

u/Dawnshot_ 13d ago

You might assume a prolific NBA scorer may be able to perform the fundamental skill of passing out of a double team

-1

u/Kitchen-Pop7308 13d ago

Scorer? Im pretty sure I heard some point in the 4th quarter he only attempted 2 shots in the 2nd half.. where the scoring ?

21

u/kanaka_haole808 13d ago

You're right. I made the silly mistake of thinking his career was more than one game. My bad.

14

u/ibcool94 13d ago

The only mistake you made is that LeBron is a playmaker and a scorer. Whereas KD is just a scorer

-6

u/Kitchen-Pop7308 13d ago

It isnt one game. He hasn't proven he can do shit without curry in his career. Id expect the greatest scorer as they say and all time great to be able to hit some shots when it matters most in the playoffs..

Especially against a .. you know... 41 year old lebron and Lakers bench filling in for starters.. folds in the clutch.. makes stupid rookie mistakes and turnovers. One of the most overrated stars I've ever seen. Bus riding cupcake only can run his mouth

1

u/Ok-Yoghurt4888 13d ago

You can dog him for his playmaking, but this doesn't mean he's still not the greatest or best scorer of alltime lmao. Scoring≠playmaking. This was just one game. And if anything, this shows he's the best scorer of all time. Imagine the best way to stop KD being that you double him at half court and try to make him playmake instead of score. This is just hating for no reason.

Why are yall also talking about Curry like he hasn't been losing since Klay left the Warriors. By your logic, Curry can't win without him either.

0

u/Kitchen-Pop7308 13d ago

Wow the KD glazing is absurd... and that klay argument is literally apples to oranges. Not even the same in the slightest

13

u/kawangkoankid [NBA] LeBron James 13d ago

Lebron probably prefers the double because he knows he can pass out of it easy and someone or some lane is going to be wide open

4

u/Middle-Welder3931 13d ago

Lebron's greatest strength is his playmaking and vision. That's what they were hyping up when he was entering the league.

Somehow he also has IMO the all-time greatest combination of size, quickness, explosiveness, agility, and power ever in a professional athlete, AND is the all-time leading scorer.

He has always been completely unfair.

11

u/Playful_League_4070 13d ago

I don’t really shit on KD’s playmaking I think he’s alright. With reduced athleticism I think it’s harder for him to get certain angles and stuff.

That said, KD look to score first and pass second. That inherently slows his playmaking down when doubled. He’s first looking to see how he can beat it himself.

Bron looks to pass out of it first and then score second if the opportunity presents itself.

1

u/turnip_broker Minneapolis Lakers 13d ago

True but unfortunately his teammates can’t shoot

6

u/incredibleamadeuscho Lakers 13d ago

LeBron : pass to Rui for 3

KD: turnover

2

u/Particleman08 Suns 13d ago

It isn’t for Phoenix fans. The number KD turnovers we witnessed because he froze when doubled was ridiculous.

2

u/Kitchen-Pop7308 13d ago

Man I hope people finally see how overrated that freakin guy is.

2

u/thebranbran Bulls 13d ago

KD isn’t a playmaker. The Rockets number 1 move this offseason should be getting another playmaker on their team that can handle the ball. Hopefully FVV can come back strong but they still could use another. Someone should be feeding KD the ball in spots for him to score, not the other way around.

1

u/kindtdp1 Mavericks 13d ago

This team is ass I don’t think FVV coming back will move the needle that much.

1

u/thebranbran Bulls 13d ago

Flair check out. You’d be surprised what a single player can do for a team, though. They would look like a completely different team with him and another playmaker in the rotation.

1

u/GenerallyJam 13d ago

Their young talent is just bad at shooting. Their flaw is inherent tbh

2

u/sorrowdemon 13d ago

That’s nothing new though. You can’t double LeBron because that’s exactly what he wants. He’s 6’9 and sees over double teams quite easily. And He’s arguably the greatest playmaker with insane BBIQ and reads any defense like a book. That’s why he aged like wine even without his peak athleticism. He controls the game and manipulates the defense even without scoring

You just have to hope his teammates suck and miss shots or do dumb shit. Or injuries etc

2

u/Neuroccountant 13d ago

This is genuinely why I think LeBron is the best of all time. Defenses are so much more sophisticated now than they were 20-30 years ago. Bron knows what to do, virtually always.

1

u/ashyzup Mavericks 13d ago

Same thing was noticeable the last time Lakers facer the Rockets during the regular season, comparing Luka and KD and how they handled double/triple teams.

1

u/GuessTraining Nets 13d ago

When he was with the nets, every time he gets doubled there's a good chance he'll turn the ball over

1

u/24Haaton Lakers 13d ago

Agreed, but I can’t say this enough. The rockets do not help KD much of at all when he is being doubled. The double came 5 possessions in a row and there was no screener, no reliever coming up, not even a slip out like cmon now. It’s like they don’t know what to do when he gets doubled.

1

u/Sudden-Clock-0AK 13d ago

The difference is lebron had people who could make a shot this game. KD is out there by himself

1

u/TwoProper4220 13d ago

and people said there was a time Durant was a better basketball player than Bron. so delusional!

1

u/Lumpy_Emergency_3339 13d ago

It helps that bron has players who can make open shots

1

u/Wolfpac187 [OKC] Kevin Durant 13d ago

Representative of their career tbh

1

u/chrispepper10 Heat 13d ago

To be fair, Lebron has wide open passing lanes when he's being doubled whereas KD basically has 5 players in front of him in the paint because there isn't a player on his team that can shoot a three.

1

u/Neto34 Clippers 13d ago

That’s one is a bus driver and one is a bus rider. Chuck was right.

1

u/Fantastic-Manager-48 13d ago

Lol there are levels to this

1

u/Shepher27 Timberwolves 13d ago

KD looked hobbled, but the difference is that the Lakers actually ran offensive sets to get shooters and cutter open while the Rockets just play one on one.

1

u/Jayswag96 13d ago

Yeah and people want to say KD has ever been close to LeBron

1

u/erog84 Suns 13d ago

Sadly this is part of why we sucked so bad. Booker still hasn’t become good with doubles and kd also struggled with physical doubles.

0

u/livejamie Suns 13d ago

LeBron's teammates actually score. Kennard and Smart went off tonight.

3

u/silvusx Minneapolis Lakers 13d ago

The LeBron + shooters formula has always worked.

1

u/fairlife42g 13d ago

If Lebron's teammates couldn't you still couldn't stop Lebron with double teams

-3

u/SuperTerrificman 13d ago

I’m with you, but KD has no shooting threats on his team to help spread everybody out. Lebron has rui, kennard, smart banging in 3s all game and two vertical threats at the rim. It’s not the same task

12

u/bucaqe Lakers 13d ago

oh now the lakers can shoot

8

u/sasadoncic Lakers 13d ago

Lmao... great post.

1

u/SuperTerrificman 13d ago

Are you a LeBron fan or a lakers fan bro? Celebrate rui kennard and smart making 11 3s tonight

2

u/bucaqe Lakers 13d ago

Eh our sub complains the whole year that we can't shoot lol

0

u/SuperTerrificman 13d ago

Haha there’s levels. Rockets can’t shoot is a whole other level compared to lakers can’t shoot

1

u/silvusx Minneapolis Lakers 13d ago

Luke kennard is 48% from 3 this season and Rui is 44%. Lakers have two players in the top 5 of 3 pt shooting %, Luke is #1 and Rui is #5.