Game ID: 22300662
Los Angeles Lakers @ Houston Rockets
Monday, January 29, 2024 at 8:00 PM ET
Toyota Center, Houston, TX
Q1 Q2 Q3 Q4 Final
HOU 42 36 30 27 135LAL 31 29 24 35 119
HOU vs LAL ScoutingHOU vs LAL Scouting
Welcome to the scouting desk. The coffee is cold, the film is play-by-play, and somebody has to explain what happened.
Every game has a hinge — a stretch where it was decided, usually while everyone was watching something else. Start where the evidence lives: the Lineups' face-offs say which five actually won their minutes; the Possessions ledger says who ran ahead of the night's own pace; the Shot Chart says where the points really came from, which is rarely where the highlights were. When all three agree, that is the story. When they don't — that is why this desk has a chair.
HOU availability going into 1/21 · back-to-backOUT Landale missed 2 since 1/17, returns tonight: 11 min (80% of 14)
BACK Brooks back 1/13 after 9, 33 min since (106% of 31)
HOU availability going into 1/24 · 2 days' restBACK Brooks back 1/13 after 9, 34 min since (111% of 31)
BACK Landale back 1/13 after 4, 11 min since (78% of 14)
HOU availability going into 1/26 · 1 day's restOUT Smith Jr. missed 2 since 1/21, out tonight
BACK Landale back 1/21 after 2, 12 min since (89% of 14)
NEW Sengun 32 to 38 min over the last 5
NEW Je. Green 17 to 22 min over the last 4
HOU availability going into 1/27 · back-to-backOUT Smith Jr. missed 3 since 1/21, out tonight
BACK Landale back 1/21 after 2, 13 min since (97% of 14)
NEW Je. Green 17 to 23 min over the last 4
HOU availability going into 1/29 · 1 day's restOUT Smith Jr. missed 4 since 1/21, returns tonight: 36 min (113% of 32)
BACK Landale back 1/21 after 2, 11 min since (83% of 14)
NEW Je. Green 17 to 22 min over the last 4
HOU availability going into 1/31 · 1 day's restBACK Smith Jr. back 1/29 after 4, 36 min since (113% of 32)
BACK Landale back 1/21 after 2, 11 min since (83% of 14)
NEW Holiday 16 to 23 min over the last 4
HOU availability going into 2/02 · 1 day's restOUT Landale missed 2 since 1/29, out tonight
BACK Smith Jr. back 1/29 after 4, 29 min since (91% of 32)
HOU availability going into 2/04 · 1 day's restOUT Landale missed 3 since 1/29, returns tonight: 7 min (49% of 14)
BACK Smith Jr. back 1/29 after 4, 27 min since (86% of 32)
HOU availability going into 2/06 · 1 day's restBACK Smith Jr. back 1/29 after 4, 25 min since (79% of 32)
BACK Landale back 2/04 after 3, 7 min since (49% of 14)
LAL availability going into 1/21 · 1 day's restOUT Reddish missed 3 since 1/15, returns tonight: 21 min (103% of 20)
OUT Vincent missed 15 since 12/21, out tonight
BACK Hachimura back 1/13 after 5, 19 min since (70% of 27)
BACK Hayes back 1/11 after 3, 7 min since (56% of 12)
LAL availability going into 1/23 · 1 day's restOUT Vincent missed 16 since 12/21, out tonight
BACK Hachimura back 1/13 after 5, 20 min since (73% of 27)
BACK Reddish back 1/21 after 3, 21 min since (103% of 20)
BACK Hayes back 1/17 after 2, 4 min since (32% of 12)
LAL availability going into 1/25 · 1 day's restOUT Vincent missed 17 since 12/21, out tonight
BACK Reddish back 1/21 after 3, 19 min since (91% of 20)
BACK Hayes back 1/17 after 2, 3 min since (26% of 12)
LAL availability going into 1/27 · 1 day's restOUT Vincent missed 18 since 12/21, out tonight
BACK Reddish back 1/21 after 3, 19 min since (91% of 20)
BACK Hayes back 1/17 after 2, 3 min since (26% of 12)
LAL availability going into 1/29 · 1 day's restOUT Reddish missed 2 since 1/25, out tonight
OUT Vincent missed 19 since 12/21, out tonight
OUT Hayes missed 2 since 1/25, returns tonight: 14 min (112% of 12)
NEW Russell 33 to 39 min over the last 5
NEW Vanderbilt 20 to 27 min over the last 5
LAL availability going into 1/30 · back-to-backOUT Reddish missed 3 since 1/25, out tonight
OUT Vincent missed 20 since 12/21, out tonight
BACK Hayes back 1/29 after 2, 14 min since (112% of 12)
NEW Russell 33 to 40 min over the last 5
LAL availability going into 2/01 · 1 day's restOUT Reddish missed 4 since 1/25, out tonight
OUT Vincent missed 21 since 12/21, out tonight
BACK Hayes back 1/29 after 2, 19 min since (157% of 12)
NEW Russell 33 to 39 min over the last 5
NEW Vanderbilt 20 to 25 min over the last 5
LAL availability going into 2/03 · 1 day's restOUT Davis missed 2 since 1/30, returns tonight: 36 min (101% of 36)
OUT Reddish missed 5 since 1/25, out tonight
OUT Vincent missed 22 since 12/21, out tonight
BACK Hayes back 1/29 after 2, 24 min since (197% of 12)
NEW Russell 33 to 39 min over the last 5
LAL availability going into 2/05 · 1 day's restOUT Reddish missed 6 since 1/25, out tonight
OUT Vincent missed 23 since 12/21, out tonight
BACK Davis back 2/03 after 2, 36 min since (101% of 36)
BACK Hayes back 1/29 after 2, 21 min since (173% of 12)
I Know — the desk, before tip-off
Written before tip-off, from the five games each side brought in.
Houston comes in 2-3 over its last five, scoring 121 a night and allowing 118, shooting 47 percent and 32 from three, 24 free throws a game; Sengun at 23 and Ja. Green at 21 a game. Without Smith Jr. (4 straight). One day's rest. The Lakers come in 3-2 over their last five, scoring 130 a night and allowing 129, shooting 51 percent and 42 from three, 28 free throws a game; James at 28 and Russell at 28 a game. Without Reddish (2 straight), Vincent (19 straight). One day's rest.
So: Houston wins, and the game turns on the arc, the Lakers at 42 percent from three to Houston's 32 and the defense, Houston allowing 118 a night to the Lakers' 129. Call it Houston 121, the Lakers 118, the Lakers keeping it close.
1/21 vs BOS 107-116 — HOU notes
HOU lost 107-116. HOU shot 44% (41 of 94) to BOS's 44%, 10 of 35 from three. Brooks led with 25 (8 of 22, 5 of 15 from three); Sengun added 24, Green 16. Q3 was theirs, 25-20, the deficit cut from 15 to 10, but the other 3 periods went 96-82 against them. Whitmore's -15 in 27 minutes was the worst on the floor.
1/24 vs POR 131-137 — HOU notes
HOU lost 131-137 in 1 overtime. HOU shot 53% (50 of 94) to POR's 51%, 12 of 36 from three. The glass went 37-48 against them. Sengun led with 30 (11 of 17, 7 of 8 at the line); Ja. Green added 29, VanVleet 18. Q2 was theirs, 32-27, but the other 4 periods went 110-99 against them. They led by as many as 13. Je. Green's -11 in 38 minutes was the worst on the floor.
1/26 @ CHA 138-104 — HOU notes
HOU won 138-104. HOU shot 56% (50 of 89) to CHA's 41%, 13 of 33 from three. The glass went 53-32 for them. Ja. Green led with 36 (12 of 20, 1 of 7 from three, 11 of 12 at the line); Whitmore added 24, VanVleet 14. The hinge was Q3, 44-25: a lead of 2 became 21, and the lead reached 41. VanVleet was the night's best plus/minus at +26.
1/27 @ BKN 104-106 — HOU notes
HOU lost 104-106. HOU took 20 more shots (94 to 74), fed by 15 offensive rebounds, but shot 39% to BKN's 49%, 10 of 37 from three, and got to the line 23 times to BKN's 37. The glass went 55-40 for them. Brooks led with 19 (7 of 18, 1 of 7 from three); Ja. Green added 19, Whitmore 19. Q4 was theirs, 34-18, the deficit cut from 18 to 2, but the other 3 periods went 88-70 against them. Je. Green's -15 in 16 minutes was the worst on the floor.
1/29 vs LAL 135-119 — HOU notes
HOU won 135-119. HOU shot 53% (52 of 98) to LAL's 49%, 12 of 36 from three. The glass went 56-35 for them. Ja. Green led with 34 (12 of 23, 4 of 10 from three, 6 of 6 at the line); Sengun added 31, Whitmore 20. The hinge was Q1, 42-31: from level to 11 ahead, and the lead reached 30. VanVleet was the night's best plus/minus at +17.
1/31 vs NOP — I Know, the desk before tip-off
Written before tip-off, from the five games each side brought in.
Houston comes in 2-3 over its last five, scoring 123 a night and allowing 116, shooting 49 percent and 32 from three, 25 free throws a game; Ja. Green at 27 and Sengun at 22 a game. It has won the glass by 8 a night. One day's rest. New Orleans comes in 1-4 over its last five, scoring 115 a night and allowing 123, shooting 48 percent and 34 from three, 20 free throws a game; Williamson at 22 and Ingram at 20 a game. That is 3 straight losses. One day's rest.
So: Houston wins, and the game turns on the glass, where Houston has been plus-8 a night and New Orleans plus-1 and the defense, Houston allowing 116 a night to New Orleans's 123. Call it Houston 119, New Orleans 114.
2/02 vs TOR — I Know, the desk before tip-off
Written before tip-off, from the five games each side brought in.
Houston comes in 2-3 over its last five, scoring 121 a night and allowing 115, shooting 48 percent and 32 from three, 24 free throws a game; Ja. Green at 30 and Sengun at 19 a game. One day's rest. Toronto comes in 1-4 over its last five, scoring 110 a night and allowing 119, shooting 46 percent and 36 from three, 24 free throws a game; Barrett at 24 and Barnes at 18 a game. It has lost the glass by 7 a night. Without Barrett (2 straight), Quickley (3 straight), Poeltl (11 straight). 2 days' rest.
So: Houston wins, and the game turns on the glass, where Houston has been plus-4 a night and Toronto minus-7. Call it Houston 119, Toronto 112.
2/04 @ MIN — I Know, the desk before tip-off
Written before tip-off, from the five games each side brought in.
Minnesota comes in 3-2 over its last five, scoring 108 a night and allowing 101, shooting 51 percent and 44 from three, 19 free throws a game; Towns at 23 and Edwards at 23 a game. One day's rest. Houston comes in 3-2 over its last five, scoring 122 a night and allowing 109, shooting 50 percent and 33 from three, 23 free throws a game; Ja. Green at 27 and Whitmore at 21 a game. It has won the glass by 8 a night. One day's rest.
So: Minnesota wins, and the game turns on the arc, Minnesota at 44 percent from three to Houston's 33 and the defense, Minnesota allowing 101 a night to Houston's 109. Call it Minnesota 112, Houston 110, Houston keeping it close.
2/06 @ IND — I Know, the desk before tip-off
Written before tip-off, from the five games each side brought in.
Indiana comes in 2-3 over its last five, scoring 116 a night and allowing 116, shooting 49 percent and 35 from three, 17 free throws a game; Mathurin at 23 and Siakam at 21 a game. One day's rest. Houston comes in 2-3 over its last five, scoring 113 a night and allowing 110, shooting 46 percent and 31 from three, 22 free throws a game; Ja. Green at 21 and Sengun at 19 a game. One day's rest.
So: Indiana wins, in a game with no one edge to lean on. Call it Indiana 117, Houston 115, Houston keeping it close.
1/21 vs POR 134-110 — LAL notes
LAL won 134-110. LAL shot 55% (47 of 86) to POR's 47%, 13 of 33 from three, and went to the line 29 times to POR's 20 — 27 points from the stripe to their 17. The glass went 45-35 for them. Russell led with 34 (14 of 21, 6 of 11 from three); James added 28, Reaves 15. The hinge was Q2, 31-23: a lead of 5 became 13, and the lead reached 27. Russell was the night's best plus/minus at +29.
1/23 @ LAC 116-127 — LAL notes
LAL lost 116-127. LAL shot 49% (45 of 92) to LAC's 59%, 11 of 32 from three, and went to the line 22 times to LAC's 12 — 15 points from the stripe to their 9. Russell led with 27 (9 of 21, 4 of 10 from three, 5 of 6 at the line); Davis added 26, Reaves 12. Q3 was theirs, 33-29, the deficit cut from 13 to 9, but the other 3 periods went 98-83 against them. Davis's -9 in 36 minutes was the worst on the floor.
1/25 vs CHI 141-132 — LAL notes
LAL won 141-132. LAL shot 61% (53 of 87) to CHI's 53%, 20 of 31 from three, and got to the line 20 times to CHI's 29. Russell led with 29 (10 of 18, 8 of 13 from three); James added 25, Davis 22. The hinge was Q2, 42-25: LAL came in trailing by 1 and left it ahead by 16, and the lead reached 24. James was the night's best plus/minus at +14.
1/27 @ GSW 145-144 — LAL notes
LAL won 145-144 in 2 overtimes. LAL shot 49% (49 of 101) to GSW's 46%, 9 of 27 from three, and went to the line 43 times to GSW's 16 — 38 points from the stripe to their 11. James led with 36 (14 of 25, 2 of 4 from three, 6 of 6 at the line); Davis added 29, Russell 28. The hinge was Q4, 27-19: LAL came in trailing by 8 and left it level.
1/29 @ HOU 119-135 — LAL notes
LAL lost 119-135. LAL shot 49% (45 of 91) to HOU's 53%, 13 of 35 from three. The glass went 35-56 against them. Russell led with 23 (8 of 19, 3 of 12 from three); James added 23, Davis 23. Q4 was theirs, 35-27, the deficit cut from 24 to 16, but the other 3 periods went 108-84 against them. Russell's -19 in 41 minutes was the worst on the floor.
1/30 @ ATL — I Know, the desk before tip-off
Written before tip-off, from the five games each side brought in.
Atlanta comes in 1-4 over its last five, scoring 117 a night and allowing 129, shooting 44 percent and 33 from three, 28 free throws a game; Murray at 26 and Young at 25 a game. Without Hunter (19 straight), Krejčí (18 straight), Fernando (4 straight). One day's rest. The Lakers come in 3-2 over their last five, scoring 131 a night and allowing 130, shooting 52 percent and 42 from three, 28 free throws a game; Russell at 28 and James at 28 a game. Without Reddish (3 straight), Vincent (20 straight). Second night of a back-to-back.
So: Atlanta wins, and the game turns on the arc, the Lakers at 42 percent from three to Atlanta's 33 and the turnovers, the Lakers giving it away 14 times a game to Atlanta's 11. Call it Atlanta 124, the Lakers 123, the Lakers keeping it close.
2/01 @ BOS — I Know, the desk before tip-off
Written before tip-off, from the five games each side brought in.
Boston comes in 4-1 over its last five, scoring 121 a night and allowing 114, shooting 50 percent and 39 from three, 22 free throws a game; Tatum at 29 and Brown at 21 a game. One day's rest. The Lakers come in 2-3 over their last five, scoring 129 a night and allowing 135, shooting 52 percent and 41 from three, 27 free throws a game; James at 26 and Davis at 25 a game. They have lost the glass by 6 a night. Without Reddish (4 straight), Vincent (21 straight). One day's rest.
So: Boston wins, and the game turns on the defense, Boston allowing 114 a night to the Lakers' 135 and the turnovers, the Lakers giving it away 14 times a game to Boston's 10. Call it Boston 125, the Lakers 116.
2/03 @ NYK — I Know, the desk before tip-off
Written before tip-off, from the five games each side brought in.
New York comes in 5-0 over its last five, scoring 117 a night and allowing 99, shooting 48 percent and 36 from three, 21 free throws a game; Brunson at 31 and DiVincenzo at 22 a game. That is 5 straight wins. It has won the glass by 6 a night. Without Randle (3 straight), Anunoby (3 straight), Robinson (28 straight). One day's rest. The Lakers come in 3-2 over their last five, scoring 128 a night and allowing 131, shooting 50 percent and 45 from three, 28 free throws a game; James at 26 and Davis at 25 a game. They have lost the glass by 7 a night. Without Davis (2 straight), Reddish (5 straight), Vincent (22 straight). One day's rest.
So: New York wins, and the game turns on the defense, New York allowing 99 a night to the Lakers' 131 and the glass, where New York has been plus-6 a night and the Lakers minus-7. Call it New York 121, the Lakers 112.
2/05 @ CHA — I Know, the desk before tip-off
Written before tip-off, from the five games each side brought in.
Charlotte comes in 0-5 over its last five, scoring 106 a night and allowing 121, shooting 45 percent and 36 from three, 18 free throws a game; Miller at 25 and Washington at 22 a game. That is 5 straight losses. It has lost the glass by 7 a night. Second night of a back-to-back. The Lakers come in 3-2 over their last five, scoring 123 a night and allowing 125, shooting 48 percent and 40 from three, 29 free throws a game; James at 26 and Reaves at 21 a game. They have lost the glass by 8 a night. Without Reddish (6 straight), Vincent (23 straight). One day's rest.
So: The Lakers win, on the road, and the game turns on the line, where the Lakers take 29 free throws a game to Charlotte's 18. Call it the Lakers 119, Charlotte 115, Charlotte keeping it close.
Who is who
the initials in the Players column
LALAD A. Davis
AR A. Reaves
CW C. Wood
DR D. Russell
JH J. Hayes
JH J. Hood-Schifino
JV J. Vanderbilt
LJ L. James
MC M. Christie
RH R. Hachimura
TP T. Prince
HOUAS A. Sengun
AT A. Thompson
CW C. Whitmore
DB D. Brooks
FV F. VanVleet
JG J. Green
JS J. Smith Jr.
JT J. Tate
JG Ja. Green
LAL/HOU the team itself, not a player
-- the feed named nobody
What
What happened
the codes in the Events column
M2 / M3 made 2 / made 3
X2 / X3 missed 2 / missed 3
FT / X1 free throw made / missed
AST assist
OR / DR offensive / defensive rebound
STL steal
BLK block
TO turnover
FL foul
OF offensive foul — ends the possession
VIOL violation
JUMP jump ball
TM timeout
IR instant replay
HE heave at the buzzer, filed to the team
END the clock ran out, ball in hand
Where
Where a shot came from
the middle field of M3.LW.25
RM at the rim inside 4 ft
RC right corner
RW right wing
SO straight on
LW left wing
LC left corner
M3.LW.25 made 3, left wing, 25 ft
X2.RM.01 missed 2, at the rim, 1 ft
When
When it happened
the Offset column
one number per event, in the Events order:
whole seconds from the start of the
possession to that event
Events FL X3.RC.23 OR M2.RM.01
Offset 0 18 22 24
the foul opens the possession at 0s;
the putback ends it at 24s, which is
the possession's own Dur
Jalen Green and Alperen Sengun power the Rockets past the Lakers 135-119
HOUSTON -- — Jalen Green scored 34 points and Alperen Sengun added 31 to help the Houston Rockets to a 135-119 win over the Los Angeles Lakers on Monday night.
Houston led by as many as 30 points in the second half before the Lakers used a 20-5 run to get within 10 with four minutes left.
The Rockets scored the next six points, with three from Green, to make it 127-111 with about three minutes left and the Lakers removed their starters.
Green, the second overall pick in the 2021 draft, is working to be a more all-around player in his first season under coach Ime Udoka.
“I'm building on it,” Green said. “That's what he wants from me. That's what I want for myself. Brick by brick, just going to keep learning and keep growing each game.”
LeBron James , Anthony Davis and D’Angelo Russell scored 23 points apiece for the Lakers, who had won two in a row, capped by a 145-144 double-overtime victory over Golden State on Saturday.
Cam Whitmore had 20 points off the bench for Houston, and Jabari Smith Jr. had 18 points and nine rebounds in his return after missing four games with a sprained left ankle. Green and Sengun also had 12 rebounds and seven assists each to help the Rockets to the victory.
The Rockets were up by 25 points after a basket by Sengun with about nine minutes left when the Lakers used a 12-3 run to get within 119-103 midway through the quarter.
Soon after that, James was knocked to the court after being hit in the face by Brooks as the two fought for a rebound. James remained face down on the court for a couple of minutes while team officials attended to him before getting up and walking off the court.
The play was reviewed and determined to be a flagrant 1 foul, and James remained in the game.
James missed both free throws, but made a layup seconds after that to start an 8-2 run that cut the lead to 121-111 with four minutes to go.
The Rockets led by 18 at halftime and opened the third quarter with a 16-4 run to make it 94-64 with about 7½ minutes left in the quarter.
Houston was up by 29 a couple of minutes later before the Lakers used an 11-2 spurt, with five points from Davis, to cut the lead to 101-81 with about two minutes left in the third.
James was disappointed in how they performed to end the first quarter.
“We just didn’t get back,” he said. “We didn’t have a sense of care factor. We didn’t have no care factor in those last two minutes.”
The Lakers' Jarred Vanderbilt was ejected in the second quarter after getting two technical fouls during an exchange with Brooks.
Vanderbilt got his first technical foul after pushing Brooks below the neck after a basket by the Lakers with about 10 minutes left in the second quarter. Brooks was walking away from Vanderbilt and had his back to him when Vanderbilt tapped him on the back of the head , drawing another technical and an immediate ejection.
Vanderbilt appeared to be upset after Brooks pushed him while he was in the air on a dunk about a minute earlier. He landed awkwardly after making that shot and fell to the ground.
“I feel like he felt like I did a dirty play,” Brooks said. “And when he feels that way he likes to bump. And it’s basketball, we bump and tussle and I feel like he took it a little too far.”
James refused to talk about Brooks, but Davis had plenty to say about him.
“You take a hard foul, it’s part of basketball,” Davis said. “But you’re just not going to blatantly push someone in their back when they have no control of their body in the air. I think he should have got ejected for that. And then … obviously you know that him and Bron have their whatever and from what I saw it was just a blatant hit on LeBron to the face.”