Redick's Lakers Face Ghosts of 2015 After Game 5 Loss to Rockets

Key facts

• Lakers lead Rockets 3-1 in first-round playoff series after 99-93 Game 5 loss.
• No NBA team has ever blown a 3-0 lead in a best-of-seven series.
• Lakers lost for first time this season when holding opponent under 100 points (previously 9-0).
• Austin Reaves returned from oblique injury, scoring 22 points on 4-of-16 shooting.
• Reaves was 4-of-16 from field, missed 6 of 8 three-point attempts, had 12 free throws.
• Rockets were 7.0 points per 100 possessions better offensively with Reaves on floor.
• JJ Redick, as a Clippers player in 2015, lost a 3-1 series lead to the Rockets.
• Lakers missing Luka Dončić (hamstring) and Austin Reaves (oblique) for Games 1-4.

A Series That Should Have Ended

LOS ANGELES — The Los Angeles Lakers had known since April 12, the final day of the regular season, that the Houston Rockets would be their first-round opponent. They built a 3-0 lead, short-handed, and returned to their home floor for Game 5 with two days of rest. Tuesday’s practice felt like the final rehearsal of the series. Head coach JJ Redick, meeting with the media after that practice, looked like he would rather fast-forward to Game 5. He gave concise answers, watching jump shots, until a question about closing out a playoff series snapped his focus. “We have to kill them,” Redick said, locking eyes. “It’s difficult to kill someone. We’ve got to — again, survival instinct says, I want to stay alive. So you’ve got to be able to kill them.” The Lakers did not kill them. On Wednesday, they lost 99-93, the first time this season they lost a game in which they held an opponent under 100 points — after going 7-0 in the regular season and 2-0 in Games 1 and 2 of this series.

Redick’s Own History of Collapse

Redick’s demeanor carried a weight of precedent. In 2015, as a player for the Los Angeles Clippers, he faced the same franchise — then the Houston Rockets — with a 3-1 series lead. Before Game 6, he had a similar look, one that suggested there wasn’t much to discuss. “We certainly didn’t treat Game 5 like a Game 7,” Redick said then. The 2015 Clippers famously did not get the job done. They collapsed in Game 6 under a barrage of Corey Brewer and Josh Smith three-pointers, then lost Game 7 in Houston. That blown 3-1 lead remains one of the defining playoff collapses of that era. Now, Redick’s Lakers are not yet in that territory — no NBA team has ever blown a 3-0 lead in a best-of-seven series. But after Wednesday’s loss, they are closer than they should be.

Reaves’ Return Complicates the Equation

Austin Reaves, the Lakers’ second-leading scorer, returned from an oblique injury for Game 5. The Lakers needed him back, particularly after struggling with turnovers while relying on 41-year-old LeBron James and a backcourt of Marcus Smart and Luke Kennard. But Reaves’ return also benefited the Rockets. the Rockets were 7.0 points per 100 possessions offensively with Reaves on the floor in his 34 minutes. Reaves allowed more field goals made (7 of 13) than any other Laker in Game 5. He struggled to find his rhythm, shooting 4-of-16 from the field, missing 6 of 8 three-point attempts, and committing three turnovers through three quarters. Still, he got to the free-throw line 12 times, scoring 22 points. “I thought he was aggressive, did a nice job of driving,” Redick said of Reaves’ comeback. “He’ll find his rhythm.”

Redick’s Coaching Outshines Udoka’s

Despite the loss, Redick’s coaching has been a revelation in this series. The Lakers, without injured stars Luka Dončić (hamstring) and Austin Reaves (oblique), have looked like the better team — better-constructed and better-coached — against the heavily favored Rockets. Redick’s adjustments have outmaneuvered Houston coach Ime Udoka, delivering an airtight opening argument in Games 1 and 2 at home. “The only thing that would make the job JJ Redick is doing better is if he were wearing a suit,” one observer noted. The Lakers’ role players, particularly Marcus Smart, have stepped up, helping the team believe they can beat Houston without their stars. But the Lakers are only halfway there. They still need to prove that their top role players can perform as persuasively on the road as they have at home, and that they can effectively rebut the Rockets’ adjustments — adjustments that are overdue but now materializing.

What Comes Next: Game 6 in Houston

The series now shifts to Houston for Game 6. The Lakers, up 3-1, still hold a commanding lead, but the momentum has shifted. The Rockets, having staved off elimination, will have home-court advantage and the belief that they can force a Game 7. “You hope 99 is enough to win,” Redick lamented after Game 5. “We just couldn’t make shots. Missed some layups. Certainly had some good looks from 3 that didn’t go down. But we’ll take a look at the whole process and take a look at the substitution patterns, and figure out where we need to be better in Game 6.” Redick’s substitution patterns will be under scrutiny, especially with Reaves’ return. The Lakers must find a way to close out a series that, for Redick, echoes a painful personal history. The ghosts of 2015 are stirring.

The bottom line

• The Lakers failed to close out the Rockets in Game 5, losing 99-93 despite holding Houston under 100 points for the first time this season in such a game.
• No NBA team has ever blown a 3-0 series lead, but the Lakers are now 3-1, and Redick’s own 2015 collapse with the Clippers against the same franchise looms as a cautionary tale.
• Austin Reaves returned from injury but struggled, shooting 4-of-16 and allowing the Rockets to score 7.0 more points per 100 possessions when he was on the floor.
• JJ Redick’s coaching has been a strength, with the Lakers looking better-coached than the Rockets despite missing two stars, but the series is not over.
• Game 6 in Houston will test whether the Lakers can rebound and close out, or whether the Rockets can force a decisive Game 7.