Why LeBron James was grateful for RJ Barrett’s Game 6 game-winner

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David Yapkowitz, ClutchPoints

Sat, May 2, 2026 at 9:53 PM UTC ·

1 min read

Why LeBron James was grateful for RJ Barrett’s Game 6 game-winner appeared first on ClutchPoints . Add ClutchPoints as a Preferred Source by clicking here .

The Los Angeles Lakers eliminated the Houston Rockets on Friday and will advance to the Western Conference Semifinals against the Oklahoma City Thunder . The series was originally scheduled to begin on Sunday, but thanks to the Toronto Raptors forcing a Game 7, the Lakers have a few more days of rest. And that’s why Lakers star LeBron James is grateful for RJ Barrett’s game-winner for the Raptors .

Following the Lakers’ Game 6 win against the Rockets, LeBron James gave his thanks to RJ Barrett hitting the game-winner so that the original time slot for Game 1 against the Thunder was pushed back a few days, as per Dave McMenamin of ESPN.

“Thank you Toronto, thank you RJ Barrett,” James said. “Haven’t seen a shot like that in Toronto since Kawhi. There’s something about those rims … We don’t play till Tuesday. I can go on the golf course now.”

If the Raptors would have been eliminated in Game 6, then the Lakers would have began their series against the Thunder with just one day in between for rest. But now, the Lakers will not begin the Western Conference Semifinals until Tuesday, May 5, giving them three days in between for James and the others to recuperate.

James is coming off a strong playoff series against the Rockets in which he was the best player on the court. He averaged 23.2 points, 7.2 rebounds, 8.3 assists and 1.3 steals with splits of 43.2 percent shooting from the field, 30 percent shooting from the 3-point line and 73.9 percent shooting from the free-throw line.

The Lakers finished the regular season series against the Thunder at 0-4.