LeBron James dished a playoff record eight first-quarter assists, helping the Lakers beat the Rockets in Game 1.
The Los Angeles Lakers certainly didn’t start the season thinking that LeBron James would be the sole star leading them to a playoff win, but James reached a level he hadn’t yet tapped into in their major 107-98 upset over the Houston Rockets in Game 1 of the first-round series. Through 292 career playoff games, James had yet to accomplish the feat he pulled off Saturday night – he had eight assists in the first quarter alone, more than he’d ever produced in a single quarter in a single playoff appearance. It was historic distribution that set the tone for the Lakers to dominate despite missing their All-Star caliber players in Luka Doncic and Austin Reaves. James finished the night with 19 points, 13 assists, 8 rebounds, and two steals.
And he found a new target to pass to in the absence of Doncic and Reaves in Luke Kennard, who the Lakers acquired from the Atlanta Hawks at the NBA trade deadline. Kennard had a breakout performance with a playoff career-high 27 points while shooting 9-of-13, including 5-of-5 on three pointers. But the attention deservedly went to James, who rightfully deemed himself a “triple threat” for his ability to rebound, pass, shoot and defend. His first half set the tone, something acknowledged by head coach JJ Redick postgame.
For the Rockets, they were also without top star forward Kevin Durant, who was unexpectedly ruled out an hour before the match. The news wasn’t too shocking given the injury being reported 24 hours prior, but he was quickly downgraded to out. It set a bit of a different tone for Houston, who wasn’t the only team that night to start the postseason without their leading scorer, but who also showed the loss more. Los Angeles’ ability to prepare with advance notice of being without Doncic and Reaves certainly helped their performance, and they also had James to step up.
Here is the full story from Rockets Roundtable writer Keysen Henderson on the surprisingly starless series and who will need to step up for a Houston turnaround.
Los Angles rose and met the moment in Game 1, while the Rockets faltered. The Lakers will take a 1-0 series lead and potentially be looking at Doncic and Reaves to return in Game 2. Houston will certainly hope a similar trajectory follows for Durant.