LA finished the series with the cleaner profile. The Lakers posted a 102.6 offensive rating against Houston's 80.8 — a +21.8 swing — converting a 12/28 (42.9%) three-point night into 36 points from deep against Houston's 5/28 (17.9%) for 15. That 21-point three-point gap was the entire margin and then some.
LeBron James anchored the close with 28 points, 7 rebounds, 8 assists, 49.1% TS and a +26 in 38 minutes — fast-break shaping (7 fast-break points) and zero blowups in transition. Rui Hachimura punched a series-defining 21 on 5/7 from three (70.0% TS, +20), Austin Reaves added 15 on 50% from the floor, and Deandre Ayton controlled the glass with 16 rebounds (27.5% rebound rate) on a +5 plus-minus.
Houston's offense never solved itself. Reed Sheppard finished 4/19 from the field, 1/10 from three, 25.7% TS — a -24 across 26 minutes that erased Amen Thompson's 18-8 line (54.1% TS, also -26). Alperen Sengun went 5/12 for 17 with 11 boards but produced a -27. Jabari Smith Jr's 9 points on 36.5% TS and Tari Eason's 14 on 47.0% TS gave the rotation no answer for Hachimura's pick-and-pop spacing. Houston's biggest lead all night was 5 points.
Victim: Houston's three-point profile. 5/28 (17.9%) in a season-ender, with Sheppard 1/10 and Smith Jr 1/6, exposed a roster that lived on volume threes through the regular season. Tari Eason's 2/7 from deep wasn't the issue — the gap between attempts (28 each) and makes (12 vs 5) was.
Beneficiary: LeBron's playoff-longevity argument. A 28-7-8 line at age 41 in a road series-clincher, +26, no public injury report, and a fast-break game that produced 7 of his 28 — that is a different conversation than the one held in February. He played 38 minutes in Game 6 without a coast.
Standings shift: Western Conference Semifinals bracket — LAL (No. 4) draws OKC (No. 1). Oklahoma City swept Phoenix 4-0 in Round 1 and last played April 27, giving the Thunder a full week of rest before Tuesday. The Lakers got Saturday off after a Friday-night flight back from Houston, then Monday in Los Angeles before flying east. Three-day rest gap.
Next Trigger: Game 1 WCSF, Tue May 5, 8:30 PM ET, Paycom Center. Bravsen model: LAL series win probability 14%. Probability basis: OKC sweep efficiency, OKC defensive rating, LAL three-point variance off Hachimura, age curve, OKC home-court adjustment, rest differential.
Next: Game 1 WCSF Tue May 5 8:30 PM ET at Paycom Center