Rockets-Lakers takeaways: How did L.A. make Kevin Durant disappear to claim 2-0 series lead?

Nobody was going to confuse this for a track meet. This was an old-school playoff game — with a couple of old-school superstars — in every sense; bodies on the floor, plenty of contested possessions and defense dictating the pace from the opening tip.

Through it all, LeBron James was the steadiest presence on the floor, and it showed in the result. The Lakers won Game 2 of their first-round series against the Rockets 101-94 Tuesday night, taking a commanding 2-0 series lead heading to Houston.

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Here are three key takeaways from Game 2:

Lakers’ defense sets the tone, breaks Kevin Durant

The Lakers held Houston to under 41% shooting for the second straight game, only this time the Rockets had Kevin Durant back in the lineup. Durant looked like himself in the first half, scoring 20 of Houston’s 50 points.

But once the third quarter got underway, Los Angeles attacked Durant — frequent and random traps, full-court pressure and aggressive doubles that came from different angles at different times. There was no pattern to it, which was the point. Every time Durant caught the ball, he had to make a decision under duress. The result was one point in the third quarter and two points in the final frame, with nine turnovers on the night. His inability to get clean looks made Houston’s offensive scheme stagnant and ineffective. Some of that does fall on coaching; Ime Udoka’s rotations were lacking and countermeasures were nonexistent.

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The tone was set by Marcus Smart. From the opening whistle, he was all over the place. Two steals in the first quarter, relentless pressure on every ball-handler and a physicality that spread through the entire unit. When your team’s best defender brings that energy, it becomes contagious. Houston never found its rhythm because the Lakers never let it.

Alperen Şengün’s not doing enough

Şengün finished with 20 points and 11 rebounds but still cost Houston the game. He shot 9-of-20 from the field but 9-of-19 in the paint — 47% in the area where he’s supposed to dominate. He missed makeable looks at the rim that would have shifted momentum in a relatively close…

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Author : Dan Titus

Publish date : 2026-04-22 06:22:00

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