It only took one game for the Rockets to learn a valuable LeBron James lesson

The Rockets knew they would be up against a Lakers offense led by LeBron James in Game 1 of the playoffs, but they might not have expected his exquisite passing display. Despite missing their top two scorers from the regular season, the Lakers found success not by having LeBron pour in points of his own but rather set up his teammates for efficient offense. Unfortunately the Rockets were missing their own veteran leader - Kevin Durant - to counter King James and ultimately fell 107-98.

LeBron James picked the Rockets apart

James dominated the game with a well-rounded stat line of 19 points, 8 rebounds and 13 assists. He was efficient in his scoring, as he shot 9-of-15 from the field. But it was really his playmaking that controlled the game and lead to a commanding victory for Los Angeles.

The Rockets lack an experienced defender capable of matching up well with LeBron. Their best shot going into the season was meant to be Dorian Finney-Smith, but he has been limited by injuries. Instead, the Rockets went with Josh Okogie guarding LeBron, but he struggled to slow him down.

Often times, Houston's only real shot at stopping LeBron from scoring ended up being an extra defender - but this just opened up an even bigger can of worms. When the Rockets sent multiple bodies, LeBron delivered pinpoint passes to his teammates in the perfect pockets for easy buckets. With him at the helm, the Lakers ended up shooting 61% from the field and 51% from three.

In fact, LeBron's personal assists led to 29 huge points across 6 different teammates. By making the simple plays, he allowed his whole team to get into a rhythm and dominate offensively. He showed his full passing arsenal, from alley-oops to kickouts and even outlet passes off a defensive rebound.

The Rockets need to slow down LeBron's playmaking

As the series continues, the Rockets will need to disrupt the Lakers offense somehow. After Game 1, their focus should be on limiting LeBron's opportunities to set up his teammates. Okogie himself can still find a big role for Houston if he can force LeBron to settle for his own baskets rather than getting other Lakers open looks.

That strategy is much easier said than done, but placing more emphasis on James' playmaking should help. The Rockets need to be locked into taking away the easiest looks for the Lakers, and those will come off LeBron's feeds. To have any chance of winning this series, they will need to be more disciplined in staying home on shooters and recovering to contest LeBron James without sending too much extra help.

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