The Los Angeles Lakers have been eliminated from the 2026 NBA playoffs after the Oklahoma City Thunder closed out the Western semifinals series with a 115-110 win for the defending champions.
LeBron James, Rui Hachimura, and Austin Reaves did everything they could to force a Game 5, but the Thunder’s timely three-point shots were back-breakers for the Lakers whenever they tried to gain some momentum and pull the game away.
The Thunder are now headed to the Western Conference Finals to face the winner of the Spurs-Timberwolves series. But the Lakers’ season ends today. Let’s dive into their player ratings for one final time this season.
Rui Hachimura: B+
Stats: 25 PTS, 5 REB, 2 AST, 1 BLK, 9-15 FG, 4-8 3PT, 3-3 FT, 43 MIN
Rui Hachimura played a crucial role in the second half, where he essentially caught on fire and scored 21 of his 25 points. He hit some timely buckets to halt the Thunder’s barrage of threes in the fourth quarter to cut it close in the final few minutes.
He was the biggest threat on offense and arguably their best player on the court tonight.
LeBron James: B+
Stats: 24 PTS, 12 REB, 3 AST, 1 BLK, 4 TOV, 8-18 FG, 2-6 3PT, 6-8 FT, 40 MIN
Tonight, LeBron James may have played his final game in the Lakers jersey and performed way beyond the expectations that anyone would have from a 41-year-old. But he missed the potential lead-taking shot in the clutch that could have given the Lakers another shot to extend this series.
He did surpass Wilt Chamberlain for the most double-doubles in the postseason; he would have traded his record if he could just to get the win tonight. We anticipate that the pressure is now on the Lakers’ front office to convince James about their championship ambitions. Otherwise, this was probably his last game in the purple and gold jersey.
Austin Reaves: B+
Stats: 27 PTS, 7 REB, 6 AST, 2 BLK, 8 TOV, 8-13 FG, 1-5 3PT, 6-8 FT, 39 MIN
Austin Reaves did have a good game on offense, but his turnovers were a lot more costly as the Thunder had 22 points from the Lakers’ 19 turnovers. Meanwhile, they managed to score only nine points from the Thunder’s 11 turnovers.
Reaves started the game strong and had 15 of his 27 points in the first half. But just like he pointed out in the last game, the Lakers lost the second half, and he managed only 12 points in the last two quarters.
Jaxson Hayes: B
Stats: 18 PTS, 5 REB, 1 AST, 1 BLK, 6-8 FG, 6-6 FT, 27 MIN
Jaxson Hayes played as the primary center for the team today and had significantly more minutes than Deandre Ayton. He was pivotal in the Lakers’ third-quarter run that allowed them to take a 4-point lead going into the fourth quarter.
Even though the Lakers lost this game, Hayes had a solid performance to gain some leverage as he is an unrestricted free agent this summer.
Marcus Smart: C
Stats: 5 PTS, 2 REB, 3 AST, 2 STL, 6 TOV, 2-8 FG, 1-2 3PT, 1-1 FT, 36 MIN
An off-night for the veteran defensive point guard, who managed to score a clutch and-1 in the fourth, but beyond that, a performance for him to forget about. Even though Marcus Smart struggled on offense, he did what he gets paid to do, which is to defend.
He was among the only two players on the Lakers’ roster with a positive net rating in this performance (+5). But with the season on the line, he should have been more efficient on offense, or at least not been as reckless as he was with the ball tonight to cost six turnovers.
Luke Kennard: D
Stats: 5 PTS, 2 REB, 2 AST, 1 STL, 2-5 FG, 1-2 3PT, 24 MIN
Kennard was not as aggressive with his three-point shooting tonight despite high expectations of performing in an elimination game. The only positive takeaway would be that he had the highest net (+/-) rating on the team tonight (+15).
In a game that was nail-biting until the end, Kennard could have been the X-factor in this game; other than Game 1, he did not have a single inefficient night. But tonight, he was not a threat on offense.
Deandre Ayton: D
Stats: 6 PTS, 3 REB, 1 AST, 3-3 FG, 21 MIN
Deandre Ayton saw significantly fewer minutes on the floor tonight after his struggles in Game 3. There was no tempo in the Lakers’ offense when Ayton was on the floor, despite being efficient in the three shots he took.
If the Lakers won this game, they would likely have benched him in the next game to start Hayes over him. The Thunder’s Hartenstein especially made him look very ineffective on the floor whenever they were matched up.
Jarred Vanderbilt: N/A
Stats: 1 REB, 0-1 FG, 3 MIN
Jarred Vanderbilt only came onto the floor when the Lakers needed him for the defensive matchups in the second quarter and for one possession in the fourth quarter. Beyond that, minimal contribution; he did not get any significant minutes to contribute.
Adou Thiero: N/A
Stats: 0-1 FG, 0-1 3PT, 3 MIN
Similar to Vanderbilt, Thiero played only at the beginning of the second quarter when Redick was resting a few starters. Since he played less than five minutes, there isn’t enough to fairly evaluate. But he took one three-point shot in the second quarter and was soon benched for the rest of the game after that.
