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Jaxson Hayes said the Los Angeles Lakers did enough in Game 1 to survive a messy playoff opener, but he knows Tuesday’s Game 2 will be a different kind of test.
The Lakers opened the series with a 107-98 win at Crypto.com Arena, even while committing 21 turnovers and giving up 21 offensive rebounds. Hayes said that kind of win can matter later in a series.
“We had like 21 turnovers for like 20 points or 21 offensive rebounds for 23 second chance points that we gave up and then had a bunch of turnovers,” he said. “Obviously they’re missing KD but we still did a lot of other things right and just got to keep it up for tomorrow.”
Houston’s late injury situation has added more uncertainty to the matchup, but Hayes did not sound like someone interested in projecting ahead. “It’s whatever happens happens,” he said. “It’s the NBA so you never know what to expect with guys and injuries.”
For Hayes, the focus is on the simplest playoff truth: possession by possession. “It’s the playoffs,” he said. “Every team’s got to play desperate. If you lose you go home.”
The Rockets’ identity is built around pace, physicality, and second chances, and Hayes said Los Angeles has already spent time on that part of the battle. “You can’t really practice offensive rebounds,” he said. “The ball’s going to come off how the ball comes off in the end of the game.”
His solution was direct. “We just know they’re going to crash,” Hayes said. “They’re one of the hardest crashing teams in the league and we just got to keep on boxing them out.”
Hayes also pointed to the value of the Lakers’ veterans and injured players watching from the sideline, saying their perspective can help during the series. “You could see different things you don’t see when you’re necessarily in the game,” he said.
The Lakers held Houston to 35-for-93 shooting in Game 1 and will need similar discipline if they want to keep their early series edge. Hayes’ message was not complicated: win the glass, take care of the ball, and stay locked in.
“Just got to prepare either way,” he said. “You just got to prepare either way.”
