I wrote this game story for the North County Times, out of Game 1 of the Lakers’ series with the Houston Rockets, on Monday night.

I expected the Lakers to be angrier, after it was over, but the dominant theme seemed to be surprise. With a dollop of frustration.

One school of thought: The Lakers got a bit soft during the Utah series, which taxed them almost not at all, and weren’t ready for a mentally tough, physically tough and well-coached team like the Rockets.

Well, they’d better be ready by Wednesday, in Game 2.