{"id":190292,"date":"2026-04-18T08:40:39","date_gmt":"2026-04-18T12:40:39","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/basketball\/?p=190292"},"modified":"2026-04-22T17:19:01","modified_gmt":"2026-04-22T21:19:01","slug":"no-5-rockets-at-no-4-lakers-game-1-preview-prediction-odds-and-fantasy-picks","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/basketball\/2026\/04\/18\/no-5-rockets-at-no-4-lakers-game-1-preview-prediction-odds-and-fantasy-picks\/","title":{"rendered":"No. 5 Rockets at No.4 Lakers Game 1: Preview, Prediction, Odds and Fantasy Picks"},"content":{"rendered":"<p>The fifth-seeded <a href=\"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/basketball\/category\/rockets\/\" target=\"_blank\" target=\"_self\">Houston Rockets<\/a> and the fourth-seeded <a href=\"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/basketball\/category\/lakers\/\" target=\"_blank\" target=\"_self\">Los Angeles Lakers<\/a> start their 2026 Western Conference first-round series on Saturday in what should be a hard-fought tug of war. The Lakers, who will be shorthanded probably throughout the series, have been one of the best teams in the league since the <a href=\"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/basketball\/2026\/02\/15\/2026-nba-all-star-game-smashing-success\/\" target=\"_self\">All-Star Break<\/a>. Meanwhile, the Rockets joined the Lakers as one of the hottest down the stretch.<\/p>\n<h2>No. 5 Rockets at No.4 Lakers Game 1: Preview, Prediction, Odds and Fantasy Picks<\/h2>\n<p>Los Angeles and Houston were in a battle for seeding positions down the stretch. The Lakers (53-29) ultimately secured the fourth seed, going 7-3 over the last 10 games, including their final three. As a result, the Lakers finished one game ahead of the Rockets. But <a  href=\"https:\/\/www.basketball-reference.com\/players\/d\/doncilu01.html\" target=\"_blank\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">Luka Doncic<\/a> (hamstring) and <a  href=\"https:\/\/www.basketball-reference.com\/players\/r\/reaveau01.html\" target=\"_blank\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">Austin Reave<\/a>s (oblique) don&#8217;t figure to be available in the series.<\/p>\n<p><iframe style=\"border: 0; width: 400px; height: 400px; border-radius: 4px;\" src=\"https:\/\/go.arena.im\/embed?publisher=lwos&amp;event=b7Uu3iL&amp;v=2\"><\/iframe><\/p>\n<p>Houston (52-30) went 11-4 over the last 15 to assure itself of a top-6 spot. The Rockets, who won nine of ten, were expected to be one of the top teams in the conference. But Fred VanVleet and Steven Adams suffered season-ending injuries. VanVleet didn&#8217;t play at all this season, while Adams last played in April. <a  href=\"https:\/\/www.basketball-reference.com\/players\/d\/duranke01.html\" target=\"_blank\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">Kevin Durant<\/a> is the Rockets&#8217; only true injury concern as he is dealing with a right knee contusion.<\/p>\n<p>The Lakers defeated the Rockets 2-to-1 in the regular season. However, the Rockets outscored the Lakers 327-320 over the three games. The Rockets took the first game of the series on Christmas Day (119-94), though the Lakers won the last two games, 100-92 and 124-116.<\/p>\n<p>Los Angeles leads the all-time series 152-91. This is the 10th time that the Lakers and Rockets have met in the playoffs. The Lakers have won six of the previous nine series, posting a 24-16 record in the 40 games. The Lakers have won four straight postseason series against the Rockets, though their last meeting was in the NBA Bubble.<\/p>\n<h4>Houston Rockets at Los Angeles Lakers Game 1<\/h4>\n<p>Game Time: 8:30 p..m. (ET)<\/p>\n<p>Place: Crypto.com Arena<\/p>\n<p>Line: -5.0 Rockets<\/p>\n<p>Over\/Under: 207.5<\/p>\n<p>Money Line: Rockets -215, Lakers +180<\/p>\n<p><!--nextpage--><\/p>\n<p class=\"\" style=\"max-width: 800px\"><smartframe-embed class=\"smartframe_wp_element\" customer-id=\"b0c95bc04383cef69c6b47df872135cf\" image-id=\"WmOBeh2MImbl\" style=\"width: 100%; display: inline-flex; max-width: 5090px; aspect-ratio: 5090\/3394;\" ><\/smartframe-embed><\/p>\n<h3>About The Lakers<\/h3>\n<p>LA has been one of the best teams in the West all season despite dealing with various key injuries. The Lakers won 11 of their first 15, and had the Association&#8217;s eighth-best record at the season&#8217;s mid-point (25-16). But the Lakers went 8-5 over the next 13 contests to drop to fifth in the conference at 33-21. They finished with the fifth-best record in the NBA after the All-Star break at 20-8.<\/p>\n<p>Los Angeles was 10th in offensive rating, as the Lakers were the league&#8217;s second-best shooting team, leading the Association with a 50.2% field goal percentage.\u00a0 The Lakers are a solid three-point shooting team, though they rank in the bottom third of the league in makes (11.8) and attempts (33) a game. The Lakers thrive at getting to the foul line (26.8 per game), though they are just average at protecting the ball. Additionally, they are a below-average offensive rebounding team, ranking 28th in second-chance points at 12.8 per contest.<\/p>\n<p>Defensively, the Lakers are slightly below average. The Lakers, 20th in defensive rating, allow opponents to shoot 48.4% from the field this season. The Lakers do defend the 3-point line well, holding opponents to 35.2% from deep, while making 12.8 of 36.4 attempts. They are average defensively, struggle with rim protection, and deal with foul trouble.<\/p>\n<p>LA is <a  href=\"https:\/\/www.nba.com\/stats\/teams\/clutch-traditional?SeasonType=Regular+Season\" target=\"_blank\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">one of the best clutch teams in the league<\/a>, winning 22 of 30 games when the Lakers are in that situation with a +2.3 scoring margin, which is second only to Oklahoma City.<\/p>\n<h4>Without Doncic and Hachimura<\/h4>\n<p>While Doncic and Reaves have led the Lakers&#8217; season-long, <a  href=\"https:\/\/www.basketball-reference.com\/players\/j\/jamesle01.html\" target=\"_blank\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">LeBron James<\/a>, <a  href=\"https:\/\/www.basketball-reference.com\/players\/h\/hachiru01.html\" target=\"_blank\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">Rui Hachimura<\/a>, and Luke Kennard have stepped up their production since the duo went down with their injuries. James has averaged 24.4 points, 7.2 rebounds, ds and 10 assists in games that Doncic and Reaves have missed.<\/p>\n<p>Meanwhile, <a  href=\"https:\/\/www.basketball-reference.com\/players\/a\/aytonde01.html\" target=\"_blank\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">DeAndre Ayton<\/a> and Hachimura have combined for 32.3 points and 10.6 rebounds in those eight games. Jaxon Hayes, Kennard, and Marcus Smart have also averaged double-figures when both Doncic and Reaves have sat.<\/p>\n<p>Since the All-Star break, the Lakers have averaged 1170.0 points on 50.7% shooting from the field and 12 treys at\u00a0 37.8%.\u00a0 The Lakers averaged 27 assists, 13.3 turnovers, and 40.8 rebounds (9.0 offensive).<\/p>\n<p>Defensively, the Lakers have held their opponents to 111.8 points on 47.5% shooting from the field and 32.7% from the 3-point line. Their opponents average 27.3 assists, 41.8 rebounds (11.2 offensive), and 14.8 turnovers.<\/p>\n<p><!--nextpage--><\/p>\n<p class=\"\" style=\"max-width: 800px\"><smartframe-embed class=\"smartframe_wp_element\" customer-id=\"a61405551f80e72f675225f083759bb9\" image-id=\"fwuQljI3BTVO\" style=\"width: 100%; display: inline-flex; max-width: 3900px; aspect-ratio: 3900\/2700;\" ><\/smartframe-embed><\/p>\n<h3>About The Rockets<\/h3>\n<p>Houston didn&#8217;t have the season the Rockets were projected to have. Still, the Rockets matched last season&#8217;s record. Their 52 wins are the most since 2018-19, when they won 53 games.<\/p>\n<p>The Rockets have been a top-5 team in the conference all season long and have been fairly consistent. The Rockets did have a nearly two-month lull, from early February to the end of March, where they went 12-12 over a 24-game stretch. However, they followed that up by winning nine of their final 10 contests.<\/p>\n<p>Houston is a well-balanced offensive team, ranking 10th in the league in offensive efficiency. The Rockets are a good shooting team, though, like the Lakers, they don&#8217;t shoot a ton of threes &#8212; knocking down 11.5 treys on 31.5 attempts. The Rockets are an elite rebounding team, particularly on the offensive end (15.0 a game). But they struggle at the free-throw line and with turnovers.<\/p>\n<p>Houston has a top-10 defense. The Rockets hold opponents to 46% shooting from the field, with their strength on the perimeter, limiting opponents to 12.1 threes at a 35.1% clip. The Rockets are a solid defensive rebounding team and don&#8217;t foul. But they don&#8217;t force many turnovers (13.4) and allow the 10th-most second-chance points (15.2).<\/p>\n<p>Durant had a solid first season with the Rockets, leading six players in double-figures with 26.0 points a game on 52% shooting from the field and 2.4 threes at 41.3% clip. <a  href=\"https:\/\/www.basketball-reference.com\/players\/s\/sengual01.html\" target=\"_blank\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">Alperen Sengun<\/a> is one of the most versatile offensive centers in the league, averaging 20 points along with a career-high 6.2 assists.\u00a0 <a  href=\"https:\/\/www.basketball-reference.com\/players\/s\/smithja05.html\" target=\"_blank\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">Jabari Smith Jr<\/a>., <a  href=\"https:\/\/www.basketball-reference.com\/players\/s\/sheppre01.html\" target=\"_blank\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">Reed Sheppard<\/a>, and <a  href=\"https:\/\/www.basketball-reference.com\/players\/t\/thompam01.html\" target=\"_blank\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">Amen Thompson<\/a> all had career offensive seasons.<\/p>\n<p>Since the All-Star break, Houston has averaged 116.3 points on 49.2% shooting from the field and 11.7 treys at a 35.5% clip. The Rockets also averaged 48.7 rebounds (13.5 offensive), 26.7 assists, and 15.7 turnovers.<\/p>\n<p>Defensively, the Rockets have allowed 110.7 points on 46.4% shooting from the field and 12.6 threes at a 35.3% clip in the second half of the season. Their opponents averaged just 38.9 rebounds (11.1 offensive),\u00a0 24.7 assists, and 13.2 turnovers.<\/p>\n<p><!--nextpage--><\/p>\n<p class=\"\" style=\"max-width: 800px\"><smartframe-embed class=\"smartframe_wp_element\" customer-id=\"b0c95bc04383cef69c6b47df872135cf\" image-id=\"WmOBPk5lZedh\" style=\"width: 100%; display: inline-flex; max-width: 3480px; aspect-ratio: 3480\/2320;\" ><\/smartframe-embed><\/p>\n<h3>Injury Report<\/h3>\n<p>The biggest injury news is that Durant is on the injury report with a right knee contusion he reportedly sustained in practice this week. However, Durant is likely to play.\u00a0 More will be known about Durant&#8217;s injury during the Rockets&#8217; shootaround today.<\/p>\n<p><span>&#8220;A source told ESPN that Durant sustained the injury during practice this week, but the Rockets are optimistic his knee will not be a significant issue during the series,&#8221; per ESPN&#8217;s <a  href=\"https:\/\/www.espn.com\/nba\/story\/_\/id\/48517626\/rockets-list-kevin-durant-questionable-game-1-vs-lakers-right-knee-contusion\" target=\"_blank\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">Tim MacMahon<\/a>.<\/span><\/p>\n<h4>Los Angeles Lakers<\/h4>\n<p>Luka Doncic (hamstring): Out indefinitely<\/p>\n<p>Austin Reaves (oblique): Out indefinitely<\/p>\n<h4>Houston Rockets<\/h4>\n<p>Steven Adams (ankle): Out for season<\/p>\n<p>Fred VanVleet (ACL): Out for season<\/p>\n<p>Kevin Durant (right knee contusion): Questionable.<\/p>\n<h3>Projected Starting Lineup:<\/h3>\n<p>Houston and Los Angeles have two of the best starting fives in the game. The Lakers&#8217; depth and firepower are obviously a little depleted with their two leading scorers out.<\/p>\n<h4>Lakers Starting Five and Rotation<\/h4>\n<p>PG: Marcus Smart<\/p>\n<p>SG: Luke Kennard<\/p>\n<p>SF: LeBron James<\/p>\n<p>PF: Rui Hachimura<\/p>\n<p>C: Deandre Ayton<\/p>\n<p>6th: Jake LaRavia<\/p>\n<p>7th: Jaxson Hayes<\/p>\n<p>8th: Jared Vanderbilt<\/p>\n<p>9th: Nick Smith Jr.<\/p>\n<h4>Rockets Starting Five and Rotation<\/h4>\n<p>PG: Amen Thompson<\/p>\n<p>SG: Reed Sheppard<\/p>\n<p>SF: Kevin Durant<\/p>\n<p>PF: Jabari Smith JR.<\/p>\n<p>C: Alperen Sengun<\/p>\n<p>6th: Tari Eason: Likely to start if Durant is ruled out.<\/p>\n<p>7th: Dorian Finney-Smith<\/p>\n<p>8th: Clint Capela<\/p>\n<p>9th: Aaron Holiday<\/p>\n<p>10th: Josh Okogie<\/p>\n<h3>Fantasy Plays:<\/h3>\n<h4>LeBron James<\/h4>\n<p>James is one of the top postseason players in NBA history. James has been very good down the stretch and is expected to continue to see a spike in usage with Doncic and Reaves out. He has scored at least 26 points and produced three double-doubles in three of his last five games.<\/p>\n<p>James has been highly efficient scorer against the Rockets this season, though he hasn&#8217;t produced many assists or rebounds. James averages 21.4 points, 7.4 rebounds, and 6.4 assists with shooting splits of 51.2\/29.4\/74.2 in games he has played at least 30 minutes. However, in games with 3+ days off this season, his scoring and shooting efficiency have gone down, though his assists are up.<\/p>\n<h4>Kevin Durant<\/h4>\n<p>Durant is an elite playoff scorer at 29 points per game for his career and is a smash play if not limited by the knee contusion. Durant, who has scored 24+ points in five straight games, has been good against the Lakers this year, though, like James, his scoring numbers are down due to pace. He averages 25.9 points, 5.4 rebounds, and 4.8 assists with shooting splits of 51.1\/41.1\/88.0 in games where he plays at least 30 minutes. His numbers are even better when he plays 40 minutes.<\/p>\n<h4>Alperen Sengun<\/h4>\n<p>Sengun is a top play today and gets a boost if Durant is limited. The Lakers have struggled mightily against centers post-all-star break, allowing 24.5 points, on nearly 60% from the field, 14.5 rebounds, and 4.3 assists.<\/p>\n<p>While Sengun&#8217;s production was inconsistent down the stretch, he was fantastic against the Lakers in his two games this year. Sengun is a double-double threat throughout the series. He averages 20.5 points, 9.2 rebounds, and 6.7 assists in the 60 gams he has played at least 30 minutes. He has produced 34 double-doubles and four triple-doubles this season. His offensive numbers have spiked after 3+days off.<\/p>\n<h4>Amen Thompson<\/h4>\n<p>Thompson is coming off a career-high 41 points against Minnesota on April 10, giving 33 games of at least 20 points this season. Thompson, who is a fantastic rebounder, has improved as a scorer and facilitator this season. He has three 30+ point games and 20 double-doubles this season.<\/p>\n<p>Thompson has been absolutely fabulous against the Lakers this season, averaging 23.7 points on 60.8% shooting from the field and 10 rebounds. Thompson can produce defensive numbers and is a consistent rebounder and passer, though his scoring and shooting numbers have taken a hit when he is off for 3-plus days. He also excels in transition.<\/p>\n<h4>Deandre Ayton<\/h4>\n<p>Ayton has been inconsistent this year, but he has two 20-point outings and a double-double in his last five games. He has been extremely efficient against the Rockets this year and has 47 double-figure games, including 14 games of 2o+ points, and 22 double-doubles.<\/p>\n<h4>Jabari Smith Jr.<\/h4>\n<p>Smith has been much better offensively after the post-all-star break and is a consistent rebounder. Since the all-star break, Smith has averaged 17.0 points, 2.5 threes, and 6.7 rebounds with shooting splits of 47.5\/37.1\/77.6. He has been very productive against the Lakers this year.<\/p>\n<h4>Others To Consider<\/h4>\n<p>Reed Sheppard, Luke Kennard, and Jaxson Hayes<\/p>\n<p><!--nextpage--><\/p>\n<p class=\"\" style=\"max-width: px\"><smartframe-embed class=\"smartframe_wp_element\" customer-id=\"a61405551f80e72f675225f083759bb9\" image-id=\"fwuQboQhCDJx\" style=\"width: 100%; display: inline-flex; max-width: 3900px; aspect-ratio: 3900\/2700;\" ><\/smartframe-embed><\/p>\n<h3>Prediction<\/h3>\n<p>The series projects to go six or seven games, depending on how the Lakers respond to playing without Doncic and Reaves. The Lakers are 4-4 this season without their two stars, getting outscored by 1.5 a game.<\/p>\n<p>But, back to today&#8217;s game. Houston has a bigger and more athletic squad and is the far superior rebounding team. The Rockets are also the better team defensively, with their backcourt capable of being elite on that end. They should be able to dominate the glass and the paint.<\/p>\n<p>However, the Lakers&#8217; goal is to keep the game close, which I believe they will. According to <a  href=\"https:\/\/www.bettingnews.com\/nba\/matchup\/2026-04-18-houston_rockets-los_angeles_lakers-n-1\/?utm_source=copilot.com\" target=\"_blank\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">Betting News,<\/a> 67% of the &#8220;smart money&#8221; is on the Rockets. I also lean towards the under as the teams rank in the bottom third of the league in pace. The Lakers will likely want to play even slower with them being shorthanded. In addition, at least one team failed to reach the century mark in two of the three meetings between the clubs this year.<\/p>\n<p>Best Bet: Rockets Moneyline (-220)<\/p>\n<p>Parlay: Rockets (ML) and Under 207.5<\/p>\n<h5>Other Bets:<\/h5>\n<p>Kevin Durant: Over 24.5 points (-110)<\/p>\n<p>LeBron James: Over 25.5 points (-111)<\/p>\n<p>Alperen Sengun: Over 20.5 points (-107)<\/p>\n<p>Alperen Sengun: Yes, Double-double<\/p>\n<p>\u00a9 Kirby Lee, Imagn Images<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>The fifth-seeded Houston Rockets and the fourth-seeded Los Angeles Lakers start their 2026 Western Conference first-round series on Saturday in what should be a hard-fought tug of war. The Lakers, who will be shorthanded probably throughout the series, have been one of the best teams in the league since the All-Star Break. Meanwhile, the Rockets [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":3146,"featured_media":190517,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_lmt_disableupdate":"no","_lmt_disable":"","sfio_featured_image":false,"sfio_embed_code":"","_ef_editorial_meta_date_first-draft-date":"","_ef_editorial_meta_paragraph_assignment":"","_ef_editorial_meta_checkbox_needs-photo":"","_ef_editorial_meta_number_word-count":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[62,1608,49087,2,31,26,50437,3],"tags":[4293,4556,69,38,1133,596,1749],"class_list":["post-190292","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-nba","category-basketball","category-basketball-betting","category-featured","category-rockets","category-lakers","category-nba-predictions","category-news","tag-alperen-sengun","tag-austin-reaves","tag-kevin-durant","tag-lebron-james","tag-luka-doncic","tag-nba-playoffs","tag-rui-hachimura"],"modified_by":"Michael Kovacs, ADMIN","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/basketball\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/190292","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/basketball\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/basketball\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/basketball\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/3146"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/basketball\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=190292"}],"version-history":[{"count":9,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/basketball\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/190292\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":190535,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/basketball\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/190292\/revisions\/190535"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/basketball\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/190517"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/basketball\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=190292"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/basketball\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=190292"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/basketball\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=190292"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}