Is Kevin Durant Playing Tonight? (Injury Update, Betting Impact for Rockets vs. Lakers Game 5)

Houston Rockets star Kevin Durant has been ruled out for Game 5 of the first round of the playoffs against the Los Angeles Lakers due to a bone bruise in his left ankle.

Durant missed Game 1 of this series with a knee injury, but he returned for Game 2 (both games that Houston lost) before suffering an ankle injury. The issue is obviously pretty serious, as Durant has been ruled out for Game 4 and 5 after he was questionable earlier in the series.

Shams: Kevin Durant (ankle) not expected to play on Wednesday.pic.twitter.com/v1oeIi8Rb5
— Underdog NBA (@UnderdogNBA) April 28, 2026

Houston fell behind 3-0 in this series with the Lakers, but it did rally to win Game 4 and avoid a sweep on Sunday night. Now, the Rockets are set as underdogs for the first time in this first-round matchup. Houston is a 4.5-point underdog on the road, where it is 0-2 in this series.

The Rockets were favored by just 2.5 points in Game 1 with Durant out of the lineup and 5.5 points in Game 2 with the two-time NBA Finals MVP playing. Now, Houston finds itself as a +150 underdog at DraftKings to extend this series to a Game 6.

Durant's absence has been a major blow to the Houston offense that lacks shot creation and has struggled in the fourth quarter all season. The Rockets are 13th out of 16 playoff teams in effective field goal percentage, and despite a strong showing in Game 4, they remain ninth out of those teams in offensive rating.

In Game 2, Durant played nearly 41 minutes for the Rockets, putting up 23 points, six rebounds, four assists and nine turnovers in the loss. It's unclear if he'll be able to return later on in this series if Houston is able to win on Wednesday and extend its season.

Durant played in 78 games in the regular season, so the Rockets don't have a ton of experience playing without him in the 2025-26 campaign. Here's a look at my favorite prop bet for Houston in Wednesday's Game 5.

Best Rockets Prop Bet vs. Lakers

Odds via DraftKings Sportsbook

Amen Thompson OVER 32.5 Points, Rebounds and Assists (-112)

Thompson has been one of the few bright spots for Houston in this first-round series, averaging 20.5 points, 6.8 rebounds and 6.8 assists per game while shooting over 14 shots per night.

He’s turned in back-to-back games with 23 or more points, which certainly gives him a pretty solid floor when it comes to this combo prop. So far in the series, Thompson has put up 31, 30, 41 and 34 PRA.

He’s going to need to score closer to 20 points to make this happen, but the former lottery pick has at least three games with seven or more assists and two games with seven or more rebounds. Houston is also +28 with him on the floor in this series (+7 in the first three games that the Rockets lost), so Ime Udoka may look to extend Thompson’s minutes on Wednesday night with Durant out.

Odds refresh periodically and are subject to change.

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