The Houston Rockets were excellent throughout the game and when the Lakers went on a 4-plus minute drought in the 4th quarter as the Rockets continued to pound the ball down the middle of the Lakers defense with the dribble drive, it was clear that Game 1 was out of L.A.’s hands.
James Harden was the leader of the bunch as he scored 36 points with five assists, but Russell Westbrook (24 points, nine rebounds, six assists), Eric Gordon (23 points) and Austin Rivers (10 points off the bench) all had their moments attacking the Lakers with the dribble. The spacing and personnel the Rockets were playing with put the normally connected Lakers defense on separate islands throughout the night. No longer were the Lakers dictating the rules of engagement as the tempo of the game was clearly being controlled by Houston.
Harden, in particular, looked like he was feeling the benefits of the fountain of youth. No longer guarded by Thunder rookie Lugentz Dort, who gave him perhaps more trouble than any individual has ever given him before, he had 25 first half points on his way to a monstrous night of 36 points as he was the best player on the floor in the game.
The Beard (36 PTS) silenced the Lakers in Game 1 🚀 pic.twitter.com/UOFxELOBSt
— NBA on TNT (@NBAonTNT) September 5, 2020
Anthony Davis had 25 points and 14 rebounds while LeBron James had just 20 points to go with eight rebounds and 11 assists. Rajon Rondo also had plenty of signs of rust in his first live game since March, scoring eight points on 3 of 9 shooting. Kyle Kuzma also had a rough night with a team-worst minus-21 plus-minus on Friday.
Of course, a Game 1 loss for LeBron James is nothing new. The Lakers lost Game 1 of their last series against the Blazers on their way to a five-game series win. But the Rockets are a different beast and they showed that on Friday night.
