LeBron's Poster Dunk, Luka's 36 Thrill Fans in Lakers' Win vs. Kevin Durant, Rockets

LeBron James, Luka Doncic and the Los Angeles Lakers picked up a valuable win over the Houston Rockets on Monday night in the context of the Western Conference playoff race.

The Lakers opened up a 1.5-game lead over the Rockets in the race for the No. 3 seed.

Doncic scored 36 points, while James had 18 points, five rebounds and five assists as well as a powerful poster slam in the first half.

Doncic led all scorers with 36 points, 16 of which came in the first quarter .

The Lakers also showcased their defense in the victory, as they held Kevin Durant to one made field goal in the second half.

The Lakers and Rockets will play each other again on Wednesday. That game carries even more stakes than Monday's meeting now that the regular-season series is tied at one.

Wednesday's winner will own the head-to-head tiebreaker, which may be the deciding factor in their playoff seeding given how close they currently are in the standings.