{"id":12690,"date":"2026-04-29T11:41:47","date_gmt":"2026-04-29T11:41:47","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/globalnewstoday.uk\/index.php\/2026\/04\/29\/jabari-smiths-blunt-lakers-take-adds-fuel-to-high-stakes-game-5-clash-sports-illustrated\/"},"modified":"2026-04-29T11:41:47","modified_gmt":"2026-04-29T11:41:47","slug":"jabari-smiths-blunt-lakers-take-adds-fuel-to-high-stakes-game-5-clash-sports-illustrated","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/globalnewstoday.uk\/index.php\/2026\/04\/29\/jabari-smiths-blunt-lakers-take-adds-fuel-to-high-stakes-game-5-clash-sports-illustrated\/","title":{"rendered":"Jabari Smith\u2019s Blunt Lakers Take Adds Fuel to High-Stakes Game 5 Clash – Sports Illustrated"},"content":{"rendered":"

In this story:
After losing the first three games of the first-round playoff series against the Los Angeles Lakers<\/a>, the Houston Rockets kept their season alive by getting a win in Game 4, forcing a Game 5 back at Crypto.com Arena.
The Rockets were dominant in Game 4, which seems to have reinvigorated the team\u2019s confidence ahead of Wednesday\u2019s game in Los Angeles, even though the Lakers have control of the series with a 3-1 lead.
#Rockets<\/a> Jabari Smith Jr. on what Kevin Durant\u2019s message to the team has been during game 4 & in the days since, \u201cstay with it, be us, be aggressive, play free.\u201d
Smith added, \u201cwe\u2019re obviously the better team I feel like.\u201d & when asked why he feels that way said,\u201d I just feel like\u2026 pic.twitter.com\/Y1yyCeq9Wu<\/a>
After Tuesday\u2019s practice, Rockets forward Jabari Smith made a bold claim that Houston is obviously the better team when compared to the Lakers, via Adam Wexler of Sports Talk 790<\/a>.
\u201cWe\u2019re obviously the better team I feel like,\u201d Smith said.\u201cI just feel like from top to bottom, you can say that\u2019s an opinion, I\u2019m biased, I just feel like we\u2019re the better team.\u201d
With the Rockets facing elimination for the second straight game, the 22-year-old may have given the Lakers the added motivation to close out the series on Wednesday on their home floor.
Along with Smith making this bold claim, which could come back to haunt him and his team, the Rockets are expected to be without superstar forward Kevin Durant for the fourth time in this series, as he continues to deal with a bone bruise from a left ankle sprain.
Smith said Durant gave the following message to the team with the season on the line.
\u201cStay with it, be us, be aggressive, play free,\u201d Smith said of Durant\u2019s message to the team heading into Game 5.
As for the Lakers, the team will likely get veteran guard Austin Reaves back on the floor for Game 5 after a nine-game absence due to an oblique strain he suffered during the 43-point loss to the Oklahoma City Thunder on April 2.
Austin Reaves getting up shots after practice Tuesday. JJ Redick says Reaves will be a gametime decision for Game 5 on Wednesday pic.twitter.com\/kNbRkSwnxv<\/a>
The return of Reaves will give the Lakers a major upgrade in the backcourt, as he\u2019s been one of the team\u2019s best scorers during the 2025-26 campaign while having a career year playing alongside superstars Luka Doncic and LeBron James.
Along with Reaves more than likely returning for this pivotal Game 5 on Wednesday, the Lakers have been dubbed the favorites (-4.5) to come out on top in this game and punch their ticket to the second round of the NBA playoffs, where they will face the Thunder.
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Ryan Ward is an NBA journalist and a credentialed reporter with more than 15 years of experience covering the league and the Los Angeles Lakers. He has written for ClutchPoints, Lakers Nation, Heavy, Rotowire and EssentiallySports. Ryan also produces a podcast and video content focused on the Los Angeles Lakers and the NBA at large.
\u00a9 2026 <\/span> ABG-SI LLC<\/span> – <\/span>SPORTS ILLUSTRATED IS A REGISTERED TRADEMARK OF ABG-SI LLC. – All Rights Reserved. The content on this site is for entertainment and educational purposes only. Betting and gambling content is intended for individuals 21+ and is based on individual commentators' opinions and not that of Sports Illustrated or its affiliates, licensees and related brands. All picks and predictions are suggestions only and not a guarantee of success or profit. If you or someone you know has a gambling problem, crisis counseling and referral services can be accessed by calling 1-800-GAMBLER.<\/span><\/p>\n

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In this story:After losing the first three games of the first-round playoff series against the Los Angeles Lakers, the Houston Rockets kept their season alive by getting a win in Game 4, forcing a Game 5 back at Crypto.com Arena.The Rockets were dominant in Game 4, which seems to have reinvigorated the team\u2019s confidence ahead […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":12691,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[8],"tags":[],"class_list":{"0":"post-12690","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-sports"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/globalnewstoday.uk\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/12690","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/globalnewstoday.uk\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/globalnewstoday.uk\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/globalnewstoday.uk\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/globalnewstoday.uk\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=12690"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/globalnewstoday.uk\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/12690\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/globalnewstoday.uk\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/12691"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/globalnewstoday.uk\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=12690"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/globalnewstoday.uk\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=12690"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/globalnewstoday.uk\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=12690"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}