HOUSTON — Los Angeles Lakers guard Marcus Smart dismissed the idea that heavy minutes led to the team’s 23 turnovers in Game 4 of the first-round playoff series against the Houston Rockets, calling the miscues “mostly mental.”
The Lakers fell 121-93 on April 26, 2026, at Toyota Center, missing a chance to sweep the series. Their giveaways produced 30 points for Houston, helping the Rockets extend the matchup to a Game 5 in Los Angeles.
“A majority of them were mental,” Smart said after the loss. “We were dropping passes, myself included. I was throwing passes to guys’ legs—normal passes we make on a regular basis. It’s something we have to clean up.”
LeBron James, Luke Kennard and Rui Hachimura had each averaged roughly 40 minutes through the first three games, while Smart averaged more than 35. Despite the workload and only one day off following an overtime Game 3, Smart rejected the notion that physical fatigue was the primary culprit.
“Just a little lackadaisical from us,” he added. “Shots weren’t falling early, and when we got to the rim there was a lot of contact and we weren’t getting calls. We’ll be all right. We’ve played our asses off for the last three or four games. Now we bring it back to L.A. and see them there.”
The game featured multiple technical fouls and ejections, and players from both teams exchanged words after the final buzzer. Smart described the Rockets’ trash talk as “hilarious” but did not elaborate.
Game 5 is scheduled for Los Angeles, where the Lakers will try again to close out the series.
Source: Lakers Nation
