It wasn’t just a postgame soundbite, as LeBron James' words after the Los Angeles Lakers’ playoff Game 4 silenced people. No drama, just clear responsibility from a player who built his legacy based on accountability.

On April 26, the Lakers lost 115-96 to the Houston Rockets in Game 4 of the playoff series. James' side was dominating the series with a 3-0 lead until Game 4, where the young Rockets side defeated them. And like a true leader, James took complete responsibility for the loss.

In a post-match interview, he said, “It started with me. Obviously, my turnovers are unacceptable. But we’ll do a better job with that on Wednesday. We understand that offensive rebounds for them and pick-sixes is not going to be good for our ballclub. You give credit where credit is due. They won the game tonight."

The Lakers committed 24 turnovers, which the Rockets converted into easy points. James acknowledged that this led to the Rockets controlling the game and never allowing the Lakers to recover.

However, the fact that James scored just 10 points, with 9 assists, acted as a massive drawback for the Lakers, which ultimately helped the Rockets secure a victory. Luke Kennard scored 7 points, whereas Marcus Smart shot nine, both on 3-for-8. And Rui Hachimura scored 13 points on 6-for-10 shooting. 

The Lakers' center, DeAndre Ayton, scored 19 points before the third quarter when he was ejected for elbowing Alperen Sengun in the head. However, the Lakers did not support the ejection and stated that they didn’t think Ayton should have been ejected for his actions.

But as James accepted that the Rockets "won the game," here's a look at how they did it.

The Young Houston Rockets’ Road to Victory Against the Lakers in Game 4

The Houston Rockets made a comeback by defeating the Lakers in Game 4. They broke the losing streak with a 115-96 win in Game 4 of the series. Since the Houston Rockets were already struggling without their star player, Kevin Durant. A 3-0 deficit is something that no one in the NBA has ever been able to overcome. 

But the Houston Rockets took control of the game in the first half, along with a brief 11-point lead in the second quarter. This was noted as their largest lead in the series. 

The ejection of Ayton was the best part for the Houstons. As soon as he was ejected, that moment was a major loss for the Lakers. They outscored 34-18 in the third period and led with 25 points in the fourth quarter. The remaining 19 points were finished by Sengun.

However, Game 5 would be more interesting as Austin Reaves' presence is expected to give a boost to the Lakers.

What do you think about James' performance and the Houston Rockets’ comeback?

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Written by

Hetal Moleshri

Edited by

Souvik Roy