LOS ANGELES — The nba lakers opened the playoffs with a 107-98 win over the Houston Rockets on April 18, 2026, at Crypto.com Arena, surviving 20 turnovers and a brutal gap on the offensive glass to take Game 1 of the first-round series. Luke Kennard scored a career playoff-high 27 points and made all five of his 3-point attempts, while LeBron James finished with 13 assists and was two rebounds shy of a triple-double.
The victory came with Luka Doncic and Austin Reaves indefinitely absent for the Lakers, leaving James to carry a heavier creation load than usual. He handled it with one more piece of history, becoming the oldest player at 41 to record 13 assists in a playoff game.
The scoreline was not supposed to look like this for Los Angeles. The Lakers were outrebounded 21-3 on the offensive glass, Deandre Ayton missed only two of 10 shots inside, and the Rockets still found little rhythm while Reed Sheppard and Amen Thompson combined for 38 shots.
Houston also handed Los Angeles two technical fouls in the third quarter, another sign of a game that kept tilting away from the Rockets even as the Lakers gave possessions back. That imbalance matters because the Lakers are already short-handed and were playing without the scoring and playmaking normally supplied by Doncic and Reaves.
The Rockets were also without Kevin Durant, who was sidelined at least for Game 1 by a knee contusion, and their attack never fully compensated. If Durant returns for Game 2 as expected, the Lakers may find themselves underdogs again, which makes this win more than a strong opener: it was a needed cushion in a series that could tighten fast.