HOUSTON — The music echoed near the loading dock as a shirtless LeBron James went through pregame strength training, rapping along with every word as it came out of the speaker.
Teammates arriving on a later bus walked past and saw their leader smiling and singing, his presence already felt even before Frank Vogel said James would be back on the court. But the pregame vibes were met with on-court realities, the truth being that the Lakers need to be close to great against anyone, even one of the NBA's worst teams, the Houston Rockets.
Rookie Jalen Green scored 10 of his 32 points in overtime as the Lakers got out-gunned in a 139-130 overtime loss.
A triple-double from James, one of the best offensive games of Russell Westbrook's season, near 50-percent shooting? None of it could separate the Lakers from the Rockets, the two teams locked in a close game for nearly every possession, including the last one in the fourth.
But the inability to get stops and the inability to close out the young Rockets in regulation, meant the Lakers had to carry heavy legs into the final moments of a game where it became increasingly clear they could not win.
Carmelo Anthony missed a potential winner when a driving James zipped the ball to the perimeter, setting the stage for the Rockets to simply sprint past the Lakers in overtime for Houston's 17th win of the season.
James finished with 23 points, 14 rebounds and 12 assists after missing one game with a knee injury, and Westbrook scored 30 points on 50 percent shooting.
