LeBron James and the Lakers failed to close out the Rockets tonight in Game 5 of their first-round series as they lost 93-99 at home. The Lakers’ 41-year-old veteran finished the game with 25 points, seven assists, three rebounds, and two steals while going 9-20 from the field (45.0 FG%) and missing all six of his shots from behind the three-point line.
After the game, LeBron James spoke to the media and was asked to address Jabari Smith Jr’s comments from before Game 5 that the Rockets were the “better team.”
“I don’t care about s–t like that, bro. The game is played between the four lines. I don’t give a damn who cares. I mean, why would anyone say ‘Oh, we’re not the better team’? Ask one of them young ones that question, I’m too old for that s–t,” said James as he put an end to his involvement in any off-court antics at this point in his career.
He was also asked to give an honest assessment of the game in terms of the offensive looks the Lakers got on the floor and their takeaways going into Game 6.
“Yeah, we had some opportunities to make some shots we didn’t make. Obviously, they were making good shots. And obviously, we’ve got to defend, but we’ve also got to score in this game too. I don’t think we did that at a good rate, especially in the second and third.”
“I mean s–t, it’s next game. Try to flush this one, but obviously, we’ve got to learn from our mistakes. We made some mistakes tonight, too many unforced mistakes, so we’ve got to be better on Friday.”
“Some of it was just gameplan discipline, and some of it was just unforced errors. So we’ve got to be better in both areas,” James concluded.
James acknowledged that having Austin Reaves back was good, but his shots were rusty tonight and fell short on a few instances. But still, Reaves managed to help James carry the offensive load a bit tonight as he ended the game with 22 points, six assists, and four rebounds.
However, most of his points came from the free-throw line as he only shot 4-16 from the field (25.0 FG%) and 2-8 from beyond the arc (25.0 3P%). Going on the road for Game 6, Reaves’ performance could be the difference maker if the Lakers want to close this one out before a Game 7.
Jabari Smith Jr. Stands His Ground On Saying Rockets Are Better Than Lakers
Following his confident remarks that some may have seen as overconfidence, Jabari Smith Jr. came to the Crypto.com arena tonight with a clear goal in his mind: to force a Game 6 back in Houston.
During his postgame press conference, Jabari Smith Jr. addressed his remarks and doubled down on his claims that the Rockets are better than the Lakers.
“Felt good to come out here with that sense of urgency. Just doing whatever it takes to win. We rallied together, stayed together, and came out with a dub,” Smith Jr. said in his opening remarks on backing up his comments.
“I mean, it’s like a mindset to have. I don’t care which team I’m on; if we were winning 22 games, I would still probably say we’re the better team every night. So it’s just a mindset to have. People are going to take it how they’re going to take it,” Smith Jr. later added.
“I don’t care who I’m with on the court, I’m always going to say my team is better than the other team. But you’ve got to go on the court and prove it, you can’t just say it and come out and tuck your tail. You’ve got to get out there and fight and do the things that it takes to win.”
“So, I’m going to stand on that statement, and we’ve just got to keep proving it.”
Smith Jr powered the Rockets’ offense tonight, especially from beyond the arc, as he nailed some crucial threes to bounce back from an initial 11-point hole. He finished the game leading all scorers for the Rockets with 22 points, seven rebounds, and three assists while shooting 6-13 from the field (46.2 FG%) and 4-9 from beyond the arc (44.4 3P%).
The Rockets now have some momentum in their favor as they look to complete a comeback that the league has never seen before. Heading home for Game 6 on Friday, May 1, they have a chance to tie this series after going down 0-3.
Will the Rockets force a Game 7 now? Or will Austin Reaves wipe off the rust and close out the series in Houston? Let us know what you think in the comments section.
