[ad_1]
The Western Conference semi-finals are officially set. The Los Angeles Lakers will play the Houston Rockets in the second round after the Rockets beat the Thunder in dramatic fashion on Wednesday.
The Lakers and Rockets have met 35 times in the NBA playoffs, and their last meeting was in 2009, when they met in the semifinals of the Western Conference. The Lakers won that series in seven games thanks to a dominant Game 7 performance by Pau Gasol, who had 21 points, 18 rebounds and 3 blocks. The Lakers won the NBA Finals over the Orlando Magic.
This season, the Lakers won’t have to worry about the Magic or their All-Star center Dwight Howard, but there is reason to believe that their series with the Rockets will be as competitive as it was in 2009.
The Lakers lost their regular-season series to the Rockets 2-1, even though the Rockets didn’t have a single big man on the court in any of their victories. If the little ball is the Lakers’ kryptonite, the Rockets are Krypton.
Here’s the full schedule for the second round:
Game 1: Friday, September 4 at 6 p.m. PT on ESPN
Game 2: Sunday, September 6 at 5:30 pm PT on ABC
Game 3: Tuesday, September 8 at 6 p.m. PT on TNT
Game 4: Thursday, September 10 on TNT
Game 5: Saturday, September 12 on ESPN
Game 6: Monday, September 14 on TNT
Game 7: Wednesday September 16 on TNT
There is no doubt that the Lakers would have preferred to tie the Thunder in the second round, but the Rockets will be a good test for them. Personally, I feel bad for Kentavious Caldwell-Pope, Alex Caruso and Danny Green, who will have to transition from Portland’s three-headed monster to the backside of Houston’s superstar. Part of me also feels bad for Mike D’Antoni, who will likely lose his job if he loses this series even though he is a very good coach. If Mike can put the past in the past with the Lakers and Howard, he would be a great complement to Frank Vogel. Just say!
As noted above, the Lakers will play Game 1 on Friday at 6 p.m. PT on ESPN.
For more The KUsers talk, subscribe to the Silver Screen and Roll podcast at iTunes, Spotify, Stapler or Google Podcasts. You can follow this author on Twitter at @RadRivas.
[ad_2]
