The Los Angeles Lakers advanced to the Western Conference Semifinals after eliminating the Houston Rockets in six games, setting up a matchup with the reigning NBA champion Oklahoma City Thunder, according to a May 5 announcement.
This series marks a significant challenge for the Lakers as they go up against a Thunder team that finished the regular season with an NBA-best 64-18 record and is led by MVP candidate Shai Gilgeous-Alexander. The Lakers enter as underdogs but previously overcame similar odds against Houston despite injuries to key players.
Luka Doncic did not play against Houston and will miss at least the start of the series in Oklahoma City due to a Grade 2 left hamstring strain. Austin Reaves was also sidelined until Game 5 of the previous round, which required LeBron James to take on more responsibility offensively. With Reaves back and James performing strongly, there is optimism within the team about their chances, though challenges remain. Jalen Williams may be unavailable for Oklahoma City at the start of this round because of his own hamstring injury.
During their four regular-season matchups, Oklahoma City won each game by an average margin of nearly 27 points. Key players were missing from both teams during these contests: James sat out one game while Doncic missed two; Gilgeous-Alexander and Williams also missed time for Oklahoma City. Despite these setbacks, Los Angeles believes playoff basketball offers new opportunities since teams can focus on just one opponent over several games.
The results from those matchups highlight how difficult this series could be for Los Angeles: they lost by scores including 121-92 and 139-96 in Oklahoma City and struggled even when games were closer at home. Injuries played roles throughout those meetings as well—most notably when all three top Laker stars sat out their final regular-season meeting with OKC.
Looking ahead, both teams will need contributions from their full rosters if they hope to advance further in pursuit of an NBA title.
