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Los Angeles Lakers forward LeBron James and Los Angeles Lakers guard Luka Doncic

The Los Angeles Lakers and the Houston Rockets are locked in a first round series that is starting to seem like a matchup of two parts. 

One minute the Lakers were one game away from a sweep and the next, the Rockets started to mount a comeback. 

Heading into Friday night’s critical Game 6 in Houston, the series stands at 3-2 in favor of Los Angeles after Houston won Game 5 at Crypto.com Arena. 

The Lakers are now forced to close out on the road or risk a historic collapse.

Is The Los Angeles Lakers’ Overachieving Run Over?

The Lakers came into the series shorthanded and no one pegged them as outright favorites in this matchup, even before accounting for injuries. 

They lost leading scorer Luka Doncic and second leading scorer Austin Reaves to injuries.

Doncic, despite a lot of teasing about whether he will play or not, has been ruled out for the entire first round recovering from a left hamstring strain. Reaves also missed time with a left oblique strain before returning in Game 5. 

GettyLuka Dončić and Austin Reaves of the Los Angeles Lakers during a playoff game.

The Lakers started strong winning the first three games, but it was really a mix of strong play, variance and strategic adjustments, with contributions from veterans like LeBron James and role players like Marcus Smart stepping up.

Once they were up by three games, advancing felt like a formality but that expectation has not held up. The Rockets slowly grew into the series and a Game 6 is on the cards. 

The Lakers have shot poorly in the last two games and it is starting to seem that the Rockets have found a loophole to get around the Lakers offensive structure. They failed that task in the opening two games and players like Kennard had an open day scoring 27 points. 

By Game 3, they seemed more balanced and only lost to experience after leading with six points with 30 seconds left. But they didn’t let Games 4 and 5 slip.

According to CBS Sports’ Sam Quinn the situation doesn’t land well for the Lakers.

“It’s an unfortunate development for a Lakers team nobody expected to be in this situation in the first place. Had they simply lost the series in five as most expected, nobody would have batted an eye. They over-performed early on through a combination of variance and strategy, but as the series has achieved a new and perhaps proper equilibrium, they’re faced with potentially becoming the first team in NBA history to blow a 3-0 series lead,” he wrote.

Rockets Aim to Force Game 7

The Rockets have also been without leading scorer Kevin Durant for the majority of the series. The 37-year-old forward has played in only Game 2 so far and even that appearance was on ice.

Just as how the series was projected to start, coach Ime Udoka’s side have clear advantages in youth, depth, and overall talent. Their starting lineup in Game 5 were players aged 24 or younger and each reached double figures. 

Jabari Smith Jr. led the way with 22 points. Alperen Sengun contributed 14 points, nine rebounds, and eight assists, while Tari Eason added 18 points.

Durant is now out for Game 6 and even a potential Game 7 is still in doubt. In his absence, the Rockets have implemented depth contributors like Amen Thompson. 

Houston will head into Game 6 with home court advantage, but the Lakers have already won one series game at the Toyota center. 

The task for Los Angeles is straightforward but not an easy one. They will once again have to rely on a strong performance from James to advance to the next round.