Head coach JJ Redick delivered a blunt assessment after the Los Angeles Lakers dropped Game 5 of their first-round series, falling 99-93 to the Houston Rockets on Wednesday night at Crypto.com Arena.
“It’s the first team to win four games in a series. We happened to win the first three; they won the last two. We need to be better,” Redick told reporters, underscoring the task ahead as the matchup shifts to Toyota Center for Game 6 on Friday.
Turnovers and missed shots doom Lakers
Redick pointed to a second-quarter stretch in which turnovers derailed the Lakers’ offense. “Another period in the second quarter where we just turned the ball over,” he said. “We hope 99 points is enough to win, and we just couldn’t make shots—missing layups, some good looks from three that didn’t go down.”
The coach added that the staff would review “the whole process,” including substitution patterns, before the next contest.
Historical stakes grow
The Lakers still lead the best-of-seven series 3-2, but the loss keeps the door open for the Rockets to chase NBA history. Teams that held a 3-0 advantage are 160-0 all-time in advancing. Houston is only the 16th club to push such a series to a sixth game, a feat it previously accomplished against the Oklahoma City Thunder in 2013.
Just four teams have ever forced a Game 7 after trailing 3-0, most recently the Boston Celtics in the 2003 Eastern Conference Finals.
Streaks snapped and injuries linger
Wednesday’s defeat ended LeBron James’ personal 16-game home winning streak in potential closeout games, the longest in league history.
Houston travels home buoyed by confidence yet still without Kevin Durant, sidelined by a sprained left ankle with a bone bruise. The Rockets list the forward as day-to-day, though multiple reports suggest the recovery could span several weeks.
Game 6 tips off Friday night in Houston. If necessary, Game 7 would return to Los Angeles.
Source: LakersNation.com
