Los Angeles Lakers vs. Houston Rockets preview: A unique matchup

A new team has emerged as a threat to the Los Angeles Lakers’ Conference Title hopes.

The Los Angeles Lakers‘ win over Utah on Tuesday night has officially secured the top spot in the West. They are clearly one of the favorites heading into the postseason, and it seems that everyone is expecting an LA vs LA Western Conference Final.

However, there’s another team outside of LA that may give the Lakers trouble on their quest to return to the NBA Finals for the first time in 10 years: the Houston Rockets.

The Rockets have put on a strong showing since the NBA restart, with an impressive victory over the Bucks on Sunday.

They’re led by arguably the most electrifying backcourt in basketball, James Harden and Russell Westbrook. Since the restart, the 2 guards have averaged 57.6 PPG, 14 RPG, 16.3 APG, on 46.5% from the field (a pretty impressive % from 2 guards that consistently shoot at such a high volume).

This duo’s success over the past 3 games isn’t a surprise, as they’ve been firing on all cylinders in 2020. Russell Westbrook has been particularly impressive since the turn of the calendar year. In November and December, he averaged 24.5 PPG, on 42% from the field, with a +/- of 3.0. In January and February, he was up to 32.9 PPG, on 53.3% from the field, with a +/- of 4.9.

Russ and the Rockets have really been hitting their stride as of late, and the way they match up with the Los Angeles Lakers is uniquely interesting.

The Rockets’ talent is clearly lopsided to their guard-play, directly contrasting with the Los Angeles Lakers’ strong-suit being their dominant size. The Rockets have fully embraced the small-ball identity with open arms—in the past 3 games, Houston has averaged 54 3PA per game (for reference, the Lakers have averaged just over 34 3PA per game so far in the bubble).

For such a big team like the Lakers, defending the 3-ball can be a challenge. Whether or not the Rockets are able to get their shots to fall from behind the arc will be the most determinable factor of this matchup.

Even if Houston gets hot from 3, the Lakers can still put up a strong fight. LA’s size-advantage will be on full display, as their bigs may very well dominate the boards. The past 3 games the Rockets have allowed their opponents to grab over 61 RPG—a tremendously high number, as the Lakers’ opponents average about 43 RPG in the bubble.

Second chance opportunities and points in the paint will be pivotal for the Lakers’ chances in a matchup against Houston.

The two teams have played against each other twice so far this season, and they split 1-1. We’ll see if the Lakers can contain the small-ball lineup and take the regular-season series on Thursday.