There might have been some reasons for concern for the Lakers in a series they once led 3-0. None of them was apparent Friday.

With a 98-78 victory in Game 6, the Lakers finished off the Houston Rockets for their first playoff series win in three years. Their reward will be a date with the top-seeded Oklahoma City Thunder in the Western Conference semifinals.

That series will start Tuesday. The San Antonio Spurs will face the Minnesota Timberwolves in the other West semifinal.

The Lakers were coming off two straight losses at the hands of the Rockets, pushing them halfway to an unprecedented collapse. Game 4 was a one-sided defeat on the road, Game 5 was close but no victory cigar. Had it not been for the Rockets’ galling collapse in Game 3, Los Angeles would have been the ones facing elimination Friday.

Game 6 had no such headache. The Lakers took a double-digit lead early in the second quarter and never let it get back down to single digits. They still didn’t have their usual offense with Luka Dončić still out, but LeBron James kept doing what he’s done all series: turn back the clock.

The NBA’s all-time scoring leader finished with 28 points on 10-of-25 shooting, 8 assists, 7 rebounds and 3 turnovers, while Dončić had his fun from the bench.

Rui Hachimura (21 points) and Austin Reaves (15) were the only other Lakers players to score in double digits, but Deandre Ayton did have a huge game on the boards with 7 points and 16 rebounds.

The Lakers were short-handed throughout this series, but the Rockets felt the absence of Kevin Durant — still out with an ankle injury — even more. They shot 31.5% before the Lakers pulled their starters and should be very grateful to the Orlando Magic for drawing away attention from their offensive woes.

Lakers hoping to reverse recent history vs. Thunder

Reaching the second round of the playoffs despite missing their MVP candidate in Dončić for the entire series and their No. 2 player by points per game in Reaves for the first four games is an impressive achievement for the Lakers, even given the absence of Durant for Houston.

The next round will be a different beast.

The 2025-26 Rockets had their limitations at the best of times. The Thunder have lost a single game with their actual starters since March 1. And they’ve steamrolled the Lakers at every opportunity.

Here are the Lakers’ four games against the Rockets this season.

• Nov. 12: 121-92 Thunder

• Feb. 9: 119-110 Thunder

• April 2: 139-96 Thunder

• April 7: 123-87 Thunder

The Lakers were missing at least one member of their big three for at least a part of each game, but that’s still an 0-4 record against the defending champions, with an average margin of victory of 29.3 points.

There’s no telling when Dončić will return from his Grade 2 hamstring strain, but OKC was still an unsolvable problem for the Lakers with him on the court. If the Lakers are going to reach the Western Conference finals for the first time since 2023, they are going to need the biggest upset of the playoffs.

It happened again for the Toronto Raptors.

With seconds remaining in an elimination game, the Raptors gave the ball to their small forward and watched him shoot a game-winning jumper that bounced multiple feet in the air before settling into the basket and setting off the Scotiabank Arena crowd.

We just described how the R.J. Barrett beat the Cleveland Cavaliers on Friday to force a Game 7, and also how Kawhi Leonard stunned the Philadelphia 76ers in the 2019 Eastern Conference semifinals.

Here’s Barrett:

And here’s Leonard:

It took about four seconds for a multitude of NBA fans to realize how loudly history had just echoed through Canada. At least one NBA player was also quite aware:

Which was the better shot, though? Let’s do a quick comparison.

In the context of what round the Raptors were in, the 2019 team was a round ahead of where the 2026 team currently is. Point Leonard.

In the context of the series, Leonard made his in a Game 7 and Barrett made his in a Game 6. Leonard.

In the context of the game, Barrett made his in overtime and Leonard made his in the fourth quarter. Barrett.

The clock? Leonard’s was a true buzzer-beater while Barrett left 1.2 seconds on the clock. Leonard.

The score? the 2019 Raptors were tied while the 2026 team was down a point, needing a basket just to survive the game. Barrett.

The shot location? Barrett made his from well beyond the arc, while Leonard had a foot on the line in the corner. Barrett.

The shot circumstance? Barrett was left open at the perimeter and made his over a late-arriving Evan Mobley, while Leonard made his shot on the run with defenders all over him. Leonard.

The bounce? Barrett’s clearly went higher, nearly reaching level with the top of the shot clock. Barrett.

The hangtime? Leonard’s didn’t jump as high, but the multiple bounces it took before going in were high drama. Leonard.

Originality? We’ve got to give Leonard some credit for being first. Leonard.

So through that highly scientific process, we’re giving Leonard’s shot the win by a score of 6-4. There’s also the benefit of Leonard’s shot being a bridge for the Raptors to win their first title (we’ll see if this year’s roster can did the same). On the other hand, it’s hard to imagine Barrett ever having as awkward a relationship with the Raptors as Leonard does now.

Obviously, there’s no point to giving either shot the crown. The Raptors will be thankful that either one of them landed; for both to hit is a miracle of physics and hope.

This year’s Raptors are now headed to Cleveland for a Game 7 with momentum on their side. That game tips off Sunday at a time TBD.

Mitchell Robinson and Dyson Daniels were both ejected in the second quarter of Game 6 between the New York Knicks and Atlanta Hawks, after a skirmish between the two interrupted a Knicks beatdown

The conflict began on a free throw, with Robinson pushing his arm back in a way that left his elbow at neck hight for Daniels. Daniels took exception and soon the pair were chest-to-chest.

Players and staff from all sides soon tried to break it up, with Hawks big man Onyeka Okongwu pulling Robinson out of the action. Robinson, however, went back in as Daniels kept jawing.

No punches appeared to be thrown, but an official was knocked over during the jostling. The Knicks had been leading 72-22 at the time of the confrontation, in one of the most lopsided first halves in the history of the NBA playoffs.

This article will be updated with more information.

The Minnesota Timberwolves’ injury situation has somehow gotten worse.

Ayo Dosunmu, the Timberwolves’ hero in Game 4, has been ruled out for Game 6 against the Denver Nuggets due to a calf injury, according to ESPN’s Shams Charania. Kyle Anderson has also been ruled out with an illness.

Minnesota currently leads the series 3-2, but faces a tall order closing the series out with its current injuries. The team was already missing starting guards Anthony Edwards and Donte DiVincenzo, who both sustained injuries in the first half of Game 4.

Edwards will miss multiple weeks with a bone bruise and hyperextension of his left knee, while DiVincenzo is out for the season and beyond with a torn Achilles tendon.

Dosunmu had been one of Minnesota’s remaining reasons for optimism after posting 43 points in its unlikely Game 4 win, but then he popped up on the injury report on Thursday morning and was ruled out hours later.

Game 6 is scheduled for 9:30 p.m. ET on Thursday, with Game 7 on Saturday if necessary.

The Houston Rockets are still on their back foot, but they’re two wins from achieving NBA history.

After trailing by double-digits at one point in the first quarter, Houston roared back to take Game 5 99-93 against the Los Angeles and force a Game 6 in a series they once trailed 3-0. No NBA team has ever overcome a 3-0 deficit, but the Rockets will try to take another step toward that feat on Friday.

They’ve already achieved something notable, though. Before Wednesday, no team had defeated LeBron James in a closeout game on the road since 2008.

Jabari Smith Jr. led Houston with 22 points on 6-of-13 shooting, while every other starter scored in double-digits. It was Reed Sheppard who delivered the biggest swing of the game in the fourth quarter.

Right after the Lakers cut the deficit to three points, with the Crypto.com Arena fully awakened, the point guard hit a pull-up jumper over Lakers center Deandre Ayton, got the ball from LeBron James on an aggressive steal and hit the breakaway dunk to pushed the lead back up to seven.

However the rest of the series works out, Wednesday’s result does mean two fewer days of possible rest for the next series. The Oklahoma City Thunder await in the Western Conference semifinals, and they are probably just fine with what happened Wednesday.

There also might be a sense of regret for the Rockets given that it would be them trying to close out the series in Houston if they hadn’t fallen apart in that brutal Game 3, but star center Alperen Şengün indicated the team had learned a valuable lesson:

"We had that bad mistake in Game 3, but we learned … Everybody feels amazing. Nobody's tired."

Austin Reaves returns after nearly 4 weeks out

The Lakers entered Game 5 with some reason for optimism, thanks to the return of Austin Reaves.

The rising star guard had been out since April 2 with a Grade 2 oblique strain, but made it back a little earlier than expected. Los Angeles is still short-handed with the absence of Luka Dončić, but there had been concerns Reaves wouldn’t make it back in time to play a postseason game for the Lakers.

Reaves, who was second on the Lakers in points per game in the regular season, came off the bench but still wound up being a featured player. He finished with 22 points and 6 assists in starter-level minutes.

Like the Lakers with Dončić, the Rockets are also missing their leading scorer in Kevin Durant, who has appeared in only one game all series. He remains out with both a left ankle sprain and bone bruise, and it remains to be seen if he makes it back in time for Game 6 (or 7).

LeBron James achieves a playoff first

There are several NBA leaders that James sits atop, and one of them is playoff steals.

No other player in league history has even reached 400 career steals in the postseason (Scottie Pippen is the closest with 395). James became the first player to reach 500 for his career in the second quarter.

The NBA has finally revealed its new anti-tanking plan, and no one can say the league was afraid of rocking the boat.

The league’s planned proposal went public on Wednesday and reportedly has the support of a majority of teams, with an owners’ vote to approve it scheduled for May 28. The crux of the system is a new 3-2-1 structure of draft lottery odds, which will see 16 different teams have a shot at the first overall pick with one, two or three ping-pong balls in the basket.

Notably, the system penalizes the league’s three worst teams in the standings, giving them only two ping-pong balls (5.4% chance at the top pick) while every other team that falls short of the play-in tournament gets three (8.1%). The full breakdown:

The proposed system both simplifies and flattens the odds compared to the previous system, in which the bottom three teams all had a 14% chance at the first pick.

It will take years to fully see every consequence of the system, but one stakeholder already has a prediction. That would be Mark Cuban, former majority owner of the Dallas Mavericks and current minority owner.

In a lengthy tweet posted Wednesday, Cuban broke down how he sees the league operating in a system where 14 different teams have at least a 5.4% chance at the top pick.

The biggest change, as he puts it: “the number of trades will explode.”

Essentially, Cuban argues that the value of a first-round pick just increased significantly, which will make teams more aggressive in trade talks. He even described a scenario in which a team is incentivized to not just bottom out, but to trade their current young players for a shot at, say, a Victor Wembanyama in the draft:

“Just imagine if you have a good young team. But just not good enough to win a ring. And you believe the best player ever is coming this draft , you literally could trade your future firsts , plus your really good young , valued players and when combined with your own pick, or picks you already had, get 5 firsts that give you, with some luck , a 40.5 pct chance of winning the lottery.

“Still an almost 60 pct chance you won’t. But it sure would be interesting as it plays out.”

Cuban also praised the NBA’s decision to lower the odds of the worst three teams, which will theoretically cause organizations to remain competitive even after being eliminated from playoff contention, as “smart.”

He said, “The games to stay out of the bottom 3 will be fun” and predicted some teams could buy at the deadline just to make sure they get their three ping-pong balls.

Tim Heitman via Getty Images

Cuban is definitely not the only person in the NBA trying to calculate how the league is going to be doing business next year, assuming the proposal goes through as reported.

His Mavericks have an interesting history with the lottery, as they never moved up in the order in 17 go-arounds until last year, when they won the right to draft Rookie of the Year Cooper Flagg despite having only the 11th-best odds. Of course, given what Cuban has said about the Mavericks’ current majority owners, that moment was likely bittersweet.

The Los Angeles Lakers are getting one of their stars back.

Austin Reaves has been cleared to play in Game 5 against the Houston Rockets, the team announced Wednesday evening. He had previously been out since April 2 with a Grade 2 oblique strain.

Reaves had seemingly been inching toward a return, with reports he tried to play in both Games 3 and 4. Like in those games, he was officially deemed questionable for Game 5, but told reporters Tuesday he was “optimistic” about playing. He was previously given a 4-to-6 week timetable to return, and this makes his comeback one day shy of four weeks.

He now returns following the Lakers’ first loss of the playoffs, a 19-point drubbing from the Rockets in Game 4. He will be coming off the bench, as the Lakers announced an unchanged starting line up of LeBron James, Rui Hachimura, Deandre Ayton, Marcus Smart and Luke Kennard.

Reaves’ return is step 1 for the Lakers getting back to full strength. Step 2 is Luka Dončić getting healthy again, where the outlook remains cloudy. Dončić has also been out since April 2, with a Grade 2 hamstring.

Dončić is not expected to return at all this series and it remains to be seen if he comes back during the Western Conference semifinals, where the Oklahoma City Thunder await.

The Detroit Tigers are holding their breath on Javier Báez after a freak play at first base.

The veteran utility man had to be carted off the field in the fifth inning of Detroit’s game against the Atlanta Braves. The injury occurred on a grounder to Braves shortstop Mauricio Dubon, whose throw to first went wide.

Braves first baseman Matt Olson caught the errant ball and went for the tag on Báez, who tried to twist away from Olson’s glove and ended up sliding late into first with right leg under his body.

Báez was in clear pain and couldn’t put wait on his right foot after the play, leading the Tigers training staff to call in the cart.

Tigers manager A.J. Hinch confirmed it was a right ankle injury to reporters after the game, via Evan Petzold of the Detroit Free Press, saying “That one looked scary.” Báez will reportedly undergo imaging on the ankle on Wednesday.

That wasn’t the only injury for the Tigers on Tuesday, as staring pitcher Casey Mize also left the game with right groin tightness in the third inning. He will also undergo imaging on Wednesday.

Both players signaled optimism after the game, via Petzold, with Báez saying he could put weight on his injured ankle again.

Báez is coming off an All-Star season with the Tigers in 2025, though a rough second half brought his numbers down more toward the norms he’s established in his light-hitting Detroit tenure. Still, his defense, versatility and experience provides value for a Tigers team leading the AL Central with a 15-15 record.

UFC CEO Dana White was one of many people in attendance at the White House Correspondents Association Dinner on Saturday night, which was interrupted by a series of gunshots heard inside the ballroom.

Like many people on the scene, he provided an account of what happened in the immediate aftermath. He did it with … enthusiasm:

“Inside, they started up. All of a sudden, it just started getting noisy. Tables getting flipped over, guys running in with guns and they were screaming ‘Get down!’ I didn’t get down — it was f***ing awesome. I literally took every minute of it in. It was a pretty crazy, unique experience.”

It really needs to be conveyed just how visibly overjoyed White seemed while speaking with reporters.

White, a longtime friend and ally of President Donald Trump, said he was sitting at a table near the front of the room, “right in front of where the president was.” He also said he initially thought the shooter might have been near him when the Secret Service rushed in.

Per authorities, the suspect rushed past a security checkpoint at the Washington Hilton with a shotgun, a handgun and multiple knives. Gunshots were audible in the ballroom before he got taken down by law enforcement. He is now in custody.

The incident saw Trump, vice president J.D. Vance and other dignitaries rushed away from the stage. In a press briefing after the incident, Trump vowed to reschedule the dinner within the next 30 days.

In addition to their friendship, Trump and White’s offices are currently working UFC Freedom 250, the upcoming UFC event scheduled to be held on the South Lawn of the White House on June 14.

Aljamain Sterling might just be worth watching at featherweight.

The former UFC bantamweight champion showcased vintage form against rising star Youssef Zalal, defeating him by unanimous decision (49-45, 49-45, 49-45). The result snapped an impressive eight-fight win streak for Zalal, who was threatening to enter the next tier of challengers in the division.

Instead, Sterling found a little more traction as he tries to complete the path to double champ status, as he explained after the fight:

“They call me unc now. I’m 36 years old, so I’m trying to make one more title run.”

The performance revolved around a gradual but eventually overwhelming advantage on the ground for Sterling, who got into his favorite backpack position several times and racked up ground-and-poundstrikes from there. The first big break came in the second round, and Sterling maintained momentum from there.

Zalal did manage to turn the tables a bit in the third round, but went for a submission instead of damage. It might have been his best chance at winning, but it left him with nothing to show for it as they entered the championship rounds for the first time of Zalal’s career.

The fourth round was a 10-8 across the board for Sterling, who had Zalal on the ground throughout, and he was showboating by the end of the fifth round.

After a strong but not exactly popular run at bantamweight — culminating in a four-fight run as champion — Sterling is in a new division and could still have plenty of work to do if he wants to get another title shot. Movsar Evloev is the clear choice as the next challenger for Alexander Volkanovski after defeating fellow undefeated challenger Lerone Murphy, and the division still has the likes of Murphy, Diego Lopes and Jean Silva lying around.

Sterling said he wanted to dive straight into that tier of competitors:

“Happy to compete against a young prospect, a guy I really think could be fighting for a world title tomorrow, and I just beat him. Movsar, I’m coming for that ass next. Volkanovski, you know I’m coming for that ass.

“Give me my shot man, I’ve worked so hard. I’ve been in this company for 12 years. That was my 23rd UFC fight. I’ve only fought three unranked guys since I got signed to this company. My third fight in the UFC was a guy ranked sixth in the world and I haven’t looked back since, so put some motherf***ing respect on my name when I say I’m next in line for that motherf***ing title shot.”

The UFC, never a big fan of wrestling-focused styles like Sterling’s, isn’t going to give him another title shot unless he makes an overwhelming case. If he does, Saturday will certainly be mentioned.

Main card

Featherweight: Aljamain Sterling def. Youssef Zalal by unanimous decision (49-45 × 3)

Women’s bantamweight: Joselyn Edwards def. Norma Dumont by unanimous decision (29-28, 29-28, 30-27)

Lightweight: Rafa García def. Alexander Hernandez by unanimous decision (29-28, 29-28, 30-27)

Bantamweight: Davey Grant def. Adrían Luna Martinetti by unanimous decision (29-28 × 3)

Bantamweight: Raoni Barcelos def. Montel Jackson by split decision (29-28, 28-29, 29-28)

Heavyweight: Ryan Spann def. Marcus Buchecha by KO (punches) at 2:10 of R2

Prelims

Middleweight: Eric McConico def. Rodolfo Vieira by unanimous decision (29-28 × 3)

Middleweight: Jackson McVey def. Sedriques Dumas by submission (brabo choke) at 2:14 of R1

Women’s bantamweight: Michelle Montague def. Mayra Bueno Silva by unanimous decision (30-27, 29-28, 29-28)

Bantamweight: Cody Durden def. Jafel Filho by unanimous decision (30-27, 30-27, 29-28)

Lightweight: Francis Marshall def. Lucas Brennan by unanimous decision (30-27 × 3)

Welterweight: Victor Valenzuela def. Max Griffin by unanimous decision (29-28 × 3)

Women’s strawweight: Talita Alencar def. Julia Polastri by unanimous decision (29-28 × 3)

For three straight games, Bronny James has received some minutes at the start of the second quarter for the Los Angeles Lakers in their first-round series against the Houston Rockets.

He finally made them count in Game 3, with some help from his father.

The eldest son of LeBron James scored his first career playoff points with a pull-up 3-pointer and a lay-up in transition on back-to-back possessions. He got support from his father on both baskets, with LeBron boxing out defender Jae'Sean Tate to give him oxygen for the 3-pointer than getting the assist on the lay-up.

The full sequence:

The elder and younger James were already the first father-son duo to play together in NBA history and NBA playoffs history. Now they’re the first to connect on an assist in the postseason, which the league’s social media department was very excited about.

Bronny exited the game midway through the second quarter, with 5 points on 2-of-2 shooting to his name. Before Friday, he had posted 0 points on 3 shots across 11 minutes in four playoff games.

The 21-year-old guard seems to have benefited from the Lakers’ injury situation, as the absences of Luka Dončić and Austin Reaves have opened up plenty of playing time down the roster.

Bronny played in 42 NBA games this season, averaging 8.9 minutes per game, and also performed well in 14 G League games with an average 15.6 points and 3.7 assists. His father insisted he was ready for playoff minutes before the series began, and so far seems to be enjoying the experience.

The Houston Rockets missed Kevin Durant in Game 1 and got him back in Game 2. And now he’s out for Game 3.

Durant has been ruled out for Friday’s game against the Los Angeles Lakers with a left ankle sprain, according to ESPN’s Shams Charania. He had previously been considered questionable for a must-win game for the Rockets, who are currently down 2-0 in the first-round series.

This. article wilì be updated with more information.