The Los Angeles Lakers will not have it easy in the first round of the 2026 NBA Playoffs.
Apart from the fact that they will be without two of their top players, Luka Doncic and Austin Reaves, sidelined with injuries, the Lakers are also facing Kevin Durant and the Houston Rockets in the opening round.
The Lakers have homecourt advantage, but that can only go so far. If Los Angeles is to pass its test in the first round, it will need its defense to slow down Rockets superstar Kevin Durant.
Lakers forward Jake LaRavia knows that bottling up Durant is a tall order, but he is embracing the challenge.
LaRavia’s Mindset: Pride and Excitement
“Yeah, I always, you know, take those challenges with pride and obviously guarded him in the matches that we’ve had previously,” LaRavia told reporters on Tuesday, via Daniel Starkand of Lakers Nation. “You know, one of the greatest scorers ever, so it’ll be very exciting for me to take that challenge.”
The confidence is necessary. The reality, however, is daunting.
Durant is 37 years old, but he remains one of the most lethal offensive weapons in NBA history. At 6-foot-11 with a handle like a guard and a release that is virtually unblockable, he has tormented defenders for nearly two decades.
LaRavia, a 6-foot-8 forward in his fourth NBA season, will have his hands full.
The Regular Season Matchups: A Glimpse of What’s to Come
Durant played in all three games between the Lakers and the Rockets during the 2025-26 NBA regular season. He averaged 20.3 points in those contests, below his season average of 26.0, but he shot an astonishing 56.1 percent from the field and 42.9 percent from behind the arc.
Those numbers are a reminder that even when you slow Durant down, you are not stopping him. He is efficient. He is patient. He finds his spots and rises up.
The Lakers held him below his scoring average, but they could not contain his efficiency. In the playoffs, when the game slows down and every possession matters, Durant becomes even more dangerous.
The Supporting Cast: More Than Just KD
The former NBA Most Valuable Player remains the focal point of the Rockets’ offense, but LaRavia and the Lakers cannot put their defensive focus entirely on Durant.
Alperen Sengun is a rising star in the post, a skilled passer and scorer who can punish smaller defenders. Amen Thompson is an explosive athlete who can get to the rim at will. Jabari Smith Jr. is a floor-spacing forward with a smooth jumper. Reed Sheppard is a sharpshooter off the bench.
The Rockets are not a one-man show. They are deep. They are talented. And they are capable of beating the Lakers in a variety of ways.
The Bigger Picture: A Massive Upset Needed
The Lakers enter the series as significant underdogs. Without Doncic and Reaves, the offensive burden falls on a 41-year-old LeBron James. The supporting cast is thin. The margin for error is microscopic.
For the Lakers to pull off the upset, they will need to defend at an elite level. And that starts with making Durant work for every single point.
LaRavia will get the first crack at it. He will be backed up by whoever else coach JJ Redick can throw at Durant. But the primary responsibility will fall on the 24-year-old forward.
“I always take those challenges with pride,” LaRavia said.
He will need every ounce of that pride.
The Verdict: A Tall Order
The Lakers are massive underdogs. The Rockets are more talented, deeper, and healthier. Kevin Durant is still Kevin Durant.
But the playoffs are about matchups, about execution, about heart. And if LaRavia can make Durant uncomfortable, if he can force him into tough shots, if he can make him work on the defensive end, the Lakers might have a chance.
Game 1 of the Lakers-Rockets series will be played on Saturday at the Crypto.com Arena in Los Angeles.
The challenge is set. LaRavia is ready. And the basketball world will be watching to see if he can slow down one of the greatest scorers ever.