A Tuesday night tripleheader of NBA playoff games on NBC and Peacock wraps up with the Los Angeles Lakers playing host to the Houston Rockets in Game 2 of their first-round series.
The Lakers won 107-98 in Game 1 despite the absence of injured scorers Luka Doncic (hamstring) and Austin Reaves (oblique) as four-time NBA MVP LeBron James had 19 points, 13 assists and eight rebounds. The Rockets are playing without injured leading scorer Kevin Durant (knee).
This is the 10th playoff series between these franchises with the Lakers surpassing the Utah Jazz as the Rockets' most frequent postseason opponent. This is their first meeting since 2020, and the winner in ine of the past six playoff series between them has advanced to the NBA Finals. The Lakers hold a 6-3 edge in their playoff series meetings; Houston last advanced over the Los Angeles in 1996.
The Lakers are 94-9 in series with a 1-0 lead, and Houston is 6-27 in series with a loss in the opener.
See below for additional information on the Rockets-Lakers game and how to watch the 2026 NBA Playoffs on NBC and Peacock.
Announcing team: Terry Gannon (play by play), Grant Hill (analyst), Ashley ShahAhmadi (courtside reporter)
Philadelphia 76ers at Boston Celtics, 7 p.m., Peacock, NBCSN
Portland Trail Blazers vs. San Antonio Spurs, 8 p.m. ET, NBC, Peacock
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With Doncic and Reaves sidelined indefinitely, James, 41, has played in five of the past six games and recorded four double-doubles. His double-double in Game 1 was his 145th in the playoffs, which ranks thjird all-time behind only Tim Duncan (164) and Magic Johnson (157).
“For me, I gotta do a little bit of everything," James said. "That’s what the job requires. So that’s being a triple-threat: being able to rebound, being able to pass, being able to shoot. Also defend.”
Los Angeles also got a major Game 1 contribution from guard Luke Kennard, who scored a season-high 27 points (also a playoff career high) on 9-for-13 shooting, including 5-for-5 on 3-pointers. Kennard led the NBA in 3-point shooting percentage (47.8%) during the regular season among qualified players.
Durant (26.0 points per game), who suffered a right-knee contusion in practice last Wednesday, was questionable for Game 1 until being ruled out in pregame warmups. His status is uncertain for Game 2.
"He bumped a knee in practice on Wednesday," Houston coach Ime Udoka said. "Hopefully, it's a one-game thing, but he tried it out just [a] short [time] ago and didn't feel good enough."
The Rockets were 4-0 in the regular season without Durant, but his teams are 8-9 in the 17 playoff games he's missed.
In Durant's Game 1 absence, Reed Sheppard had 17 points and eight assists (but made only 6 of 20 field goals) and Tari Eason had 16 points and 10 rebounds.
NBC Sports will present up to 23 games in the First Round and 11 games in the Conference Semifinals across either NBC and Peacock, or Peacock and NBCSN. Playoff programming concludes with exclusive coverage of the Western Conference Finals on NBC and Peacock.
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Peacock’s NBA Playoffs coverage spans multiple rounds, including Round 1, the Conference Semifinals, and the Western Conference Finals, with coverage evolving as the postseason progresses.