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NBA Playoffs: Rockets Shut Down LeBron, Wemby Dominates in Return and More Sunday Takeaways

By Liam McKeone, SI Staff & Blake Silverman Sports Illustrated

Updated April 27, 2026 12:54 AM

The Lakers came into Game 4 on Sunday with an opportunity to become the first team to advance to round two. The Rockets, who continued to play without Kevin Durant, had other ideas.

Houston survived at least one more game with a stomping of Los Angeles Sunday night as the Rockets' defense took away LeBron James's scoring power … for at least one game. Elsewhere in the Western Conference, Victor Wembanyama returned to the floor after he missed Game 3 with a concussion suffered on a scary fall in Game 2. The Spurs came back and ended up taking care of the Trail Blazers by 21 points as Portland now faces elimination.

Joel Embiid made his postseason debut, but even the star big man's return couldn't give the 76ers the juice they needed to get past Payton Pritchard and the Celtics. And, the Raptors are right back in their series with the Cavaliers after they took Game 4, which was a dreadful shooting performance for both sides.

With another weekend of NBA playoff action behind us, here's one takeaway from each game we saw on Sunday:

Cavaliers need much more from Evan Mobley

Cavaliers star forward Evan Mobley hasn't been a major factor in the first-round series against the Raptors. | Dan Hamilton-Imagn Images

The Cavaliers leave Toronto without a win and a series tied up at 2–2. There's plenty of blame to go around for Cleveland but it's very hard to not raise an eyebrow at the complete lack of production from Evan Mobley. Last year's Defensive Player of the Year has been O.K. defensively but a complete ghost offensively and it was never more obvious than in Game 4's tight loss. With James Harden and Donovan Mitchell both struggling to shoot the ball against a fierce Raptors defense, any contribution from their young All-Star teammate could've been the difference. Instead Mobley finished eight points and the Cavs were outscored by 13 in his 32 minutes on the floor.

That just isn't good enough. Cleveland is obviously reliant on Mitchell and Harden to score most of the points but they'll need help to get across the finish line in games like Sunday's. Mobley failed to provide that help and the Cavs aren't going to get very far if he continues to do so.

Victor Wembanyama didn't miss a beat in Spurs return

Victor Wembanyama was back on the floor on Sunday after missing a game and a half in concussion protocol following a bit of a scary fall during Game 2. Signs of rust or a need to shake the cobwebs off would have been understandable. None were found. The Spurs' star was his usual dominant self in San Antonio's historic Game 4 win, finishing with 27 points to go with 11 rebounds and the stunning combination of seven blocks and four steals.

It wasn't quite as smooth a scoring performance as his playoff debut in Game 1. But this showing will come with a big sigh of relief for anybody who was nervous Wembanyama's concussion would linger. He seems ready to get back to the championship grind-and after his teammates rallied to go up 3–1, there's little doubting they're ready, too.

Go off then, Payton Pritchard

Celtics guard Payton Pritchard scored a playoff career high 32 points in a Game 4 explosion against the 76ers. | Eric Hartline-Imagn Images

Heading into Game 4 between the Celtics and 76ers, the story was Joel Embiid's return to the floor. He was out for more than two weeks and missed the first three games of the series after a bout of appendicitis that resulted in an emergency appendectomy.

Embiid was able to make a bit of an impact immediately as both teams struggled to get going, that is until Payton Pritchard stepped onto the floor. The sixth-year guard had 13 points in the first quarter and drained a wild three off one leg to beat the buzzer.

Payton "The Buzzer Beater King" Pritchard pic.twitter.com/C7b2hyRJdn
- NBA on Prime (@NBAonPrime) April 27, 2026

His hot start continued as he finished the night 32 points, a playoff career high. Pritchard got whatever he wanted against Philly's defense as he went 12-for-21 from the floor and 6-for-12 from three along with five assists and four rebounds. He's a threat to go off each night and Sunday night's offensive show proved that Boston doesn't need to fully rely on Jaylen Brown and Jayson Tatum's scoring over its title push. The Celtics were able to finish Game 4 and empty the bench early as they now look to close out the Sixers on their home floor Tuesday.

Houston's defense shines as the Rockets will live another day

Houston was without Kevin Durant once again as the Lakers had an opportunity to pull off a clean sweep on the road. The Rockets controlled Game 4 for its entirety, however, and survived with a 115–96 win to force a Game 5 back in Los Angeles.

Houston starters Alperen Şengün, Reed Sheppard, Amen Thompson, Jabari Smith Jr. and Tari Eason all shined, each scoring at least 16 points. It was the defense that stole the show though, as the Rockets made LeBron James's night extremely difficult. James finished with 10 points and nine assists on just 2-for-9 from the field and 0-for-3 from three. He turned the ball over eight times and went over a half without a bucket-at least he got to the line six times.

Durant's status for Game 5 is up in the air. ESPN's Shams Charania noted that Durant's bone bruise in his sprained ankle would keep him out for two-to-three weeks in the regular season, but he's received treatment around the clock in hopes of a return. The Rockets certainly need their leading scorer, but Sunday night's performance was a good start.

Read our live updates from Sunday's games-Cavaliers-Raptors, Spurs-Trail Blazers, Celtics-76ers and Lakers-Rockets

NBA playoff schedule today

LeBron James and the Lakers look to close out the Rockets in Game 4 on Sunday. | Troy Taormina-Imagn Images

1 p.m. ET: Cavaliers vs. Raptors, Game 4, ESPN

The series is now 2-2 after the Raptors defended home court by winning both games in Toronto after dropping the opening two contests. Sunday's win was all thanks to the Raptors' defense, which was instrumental in keeping Cleveland's scoring numbers low as Toronto shot brutally for four quarters. The final minutes were thrilling and the Raptors emerge victorious to give this series a huge injection of juice.

3:30 p.m. ET: Spurs vs. Trail Blazers, Game 4, ESPN

Victor Wembanyama was ready to go after suffering a concussion and shined as San Antonio pulled off a historic comeback to go up 3-1 on the Trail Blazers. It was an electrifying for the Spurs and puts Portland against the wall with Game 5 and potential elimination scheduled for Tuesday night.

7 p.m. ET: Celtcs vs. 76ers, Game 4, NBC/Peacock

The last contest between the two sides on Friday was an ugly affair with both teams playing like sludge, but Boston proved victorious thanks to clutch scoring from its experienced championship duo of Jaylen Brown and Jayson Tatum. But Embiid is now in the fray, recovered from his appendectomy earlier this month; how he fares in the starting lineup could swing this series.

9:30 p.m. ET: Lakers vs. Rockets, Game 4, NBC/Peacock

LeBron James and Co. are laser-focused on finishing this series as soon as possible in order to maximize the chances either of Austin Reaves or Luka Dončić can return from injury before a second-round date with the Thunder is solidified. That means they'll be giving it their all tonight to close things out and head back to L.A. with only rest on the mind. It's hard to see how the Rockets can stop them after how the prior games panned out, but the desperation of avoiding elimination can inspire greatness previously unseen.

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This article was originally published on www.si.com as NBA Playoffs: Rockets Shut Down LeBron, Wemby Dominates in Return and More Sunday Takeaways.

This story was originally published April 26, 2026 at 1:02 PM.