LeBron James' Los Angeles Lakers secured their qualification in Houston, while the first-round NBA playoff series between Pistons and Magic, and between Cavaliers and Raptors, will go to a decisive Game 7.

Three series in the Eastern Conference will thus offer a Game 7, with the Celtics-76ers scheduled for Saturday, after a rollercoaster night on Friday.

The Lakers will challenge the champions

After leading 3-0, then seeing the Houston Rockets come back to 3-2, the Los Angeles Lakers finally advanced to the second round thanks to a big 98-78 victory in Texas.

LeBron James' Lakers, with James dominating with 28 points, 7 rebounds and 8 assists, created a gap in the second quarter against the Rockets, still without Kevin Durant (ankle), who suffered a second consecutive first-round playoff exit.

"I brought my experience, I'm the most experienced on the team, I know how NBA series go (...) we were able to choose the right adjustments for Game 6," said the 41-year-old "King" to Prime Video.

"We are ready for the challenge" of the Thunder, he added, before challenging the champion and reigning MVP Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, who await the Lakers after sweeping the Suns in the first round.

Los Angeles will have to start its conference semi-final early next week without Luka Doncic, who is still not expected to return close after his left adductor muscle injury sustained a month ago against OKC.

The Tragic Magic

Despite leading by 22 points at halftime (60-38), and then by 24 points at the start of the 3rd quarter, the Orlando Magic collapsed at home in a rare manner against the Detroit Pistons, who won 93-79.

The Pistons thus tied the series at 3-3 and will host the decisive Game 7 on Sunday in Michigan.

Having finished first in the Eastern Conference during the regular season, the Pistons were surprised in this first round by the Magic, but now have the opportunity to win a series in which they have been down 3-1, something that has only been achieved 13 times in the history of the playoffs out of 298 occurrences (i.e., in 4.4% of cases).

Detroit found themselves at halftime on the brink of a memorable defeat, totally dominated by the desire of the 8th-ranked team in the Eastern Conference, led by Paolo Banchero (17 points, 10 rebounds, 6 assists).

The Pistons woke up on defense and All-Star point guard Cade Cunningham rebelled, finishing with 32 points (including 19 in the 4th quarter) and 10 rebounds, supported by Tobias Harris (22 points, 10 rebounds).

The Magic, on the other hand, completely fell apart, losing the second quarter 55-19. The Floridians missed 23 shots in a row between the end of the 3rd and the dramatic 4th quarter, which they lost 31-8 (1 for 20 shooting for the Magic).

The Cavaliers were thrown off balance in extra time.

Having done the hard part by coming back from a 15-point deficit to force overtime, the Cleveland Cavaliers squandered their last possession and saw a miraculous shot by RJ Barrett give the Toronto Raptors a 112-110 victory in overtime.

Like Tyrese Haliburton last year with the Pacers on the Knicks' court during a memorable end to the game, Barrett saw his three-point shot bounce very high when it hit the rim, then drop back into the basket with 1.2 seconds left on the clock, before a final missed attempt by Evan Mobley.

The Cavaliers will still have the opportunity to conclude the first round at home on Sunday, but they have only themselves to blame.

Initially struggling against Barrett (24 points), Ja'Kobe Walter (24 pts) and Scottie Barnes (25 points, 14 rebounds), the visitors patiently came back in the 4th quarter, before tying the game through Mobley (26 points, 14 rebounds) with 11 seconds left on the clock, to gain 5 more minutes.

Baskets from James Harden (16 points, 9 rebounds, 9 assists) and then Donovan Mitchell (24 points) gave the Cavaliers a one-point lead and the ball with 19 seconds left, for a final possession missed by Dennis Schröder and Mobley.