HOW THEY MATCH UP

Houston can count on a combined 50-60 points, 20-30 rebounds, 12-20 assists and crisp defense from its Hall of Fame Big Three--Hakeem Olajuwon, Charles Barkley and Scottie Pippen. But the Rockets’ playoff hopes probably rest on the nerves and shooting touches of rookie guards Michael Dickerson (57 points in the last two regular-season games) and Cuttino Mobley. The Lakers depend on their Big Three--Shaquille O’Neal, Kobe Bryant and Glen Rice--for much more than that, and are looking for mostly defense out of J.R. Reid and Derek Fisher.

EDGE: LAKERS

BENCH

No sixth-man-of-the-year candidates on either side. Rocket guard Brent Price can be dangerous as a spot-up shooter and Sam Mack and Othella Harrington give Houston valuable minutes. But Pippen plays more than 40 minutes a game and Barkley and Olajuwon are 35-minute-plus players. Rick Fox has given the Lakers some explosive shooting performances backing up Bryant and Rice, Derek Harper provides steady ballhandling behind Fisher, and Robert Horry--a former Rocket--probably was the Lakers’ most well-rounded player in the final month.

EDGE: LAKERS

OFFENSE

Barkley hurts you more as a passer than as a full-tilt scorer, but he demands attention in the low post. Pippen, who has been lost at times in the dump-it-in offense, takes control if Houston can get things up-tempo, as it did in the Rockets’ 22-point victory over the Lakers on April 26. The Lakers, the No. 1 field-goal shooting team in the NBA, are adapting to Rice’s presence, lately running everything through O’Neal and letting Bryant get his shots in spurts.

EDGE: LAKERS

DEFENSE

Houston’s defense isn’t where it was in its mid-1990s championship heyday, mostly because Olajuwon has slowed down (more than two blocks a game down from his best seasons) and guys such as Horry and Mario Elie are gone. Pippen, though, can dominate a game lurking in the passing lanes. The Lakers were giving up more than 100 points a game for a horrid three-week period, but clamped down on the fastbreaks and gave up only 91.5 points in their last four games, all victories.

EDGE: ROCKETS

COACHING

Houston Coach Rudy Tomjanovich is as proven a playoff coach as there is, maneuvering the Rockets into 16 playoff series in the last six seasons, including two championships. Laker Coach Kurt Rambis, who has helped his team rediscover a sense of team unity, is the only interim coach in the playoffs. Here’s a stat: Tomjanovich has won more playoff games (50) than Rambis’ total NBA games coached (37).

EDGE: ROCKETS

KEYS TO SERIES

It might all come down to which high-profile small forward--Pippen or Rice--is able to flourish after a season of struggling to adapt. Pippen, as he proved April 26, can single-handedly ruin the Laker offense and trigger a fastbreak. Rice, as he showed Wednesday against Portland, can single-handedly ignite an offense.

EDGE: LAKERS