The Los Angeles Lakers play host to the Houston Rockets at Staples Center on Thursday.

The Rockets (32-18) look to be one of the most active teams ahead of Thursday's trade deadline, throwing Clint Capela in the midst of all of these discussions. What makes that strange is the fact that he's in the midst of a career year and is currently out because of a heel issue. It remains to be seen if this injury is falsified by these trade rumors but it's bizarre nonetheless. That's why they sent him off to Atlanta and got Robert Covington from the T'Wolvrs in return. In addition, there are talks that they'll acquire another center before that deadline. The good news is that the Rockets appear to be playing well without him, entering this matchup in the midst of a three-game winning streak. That's the team we've been waiting for and it directly correlates with James Harden returning to his MVP ways. They do need to get Russell Westbrook back as soon as possible though, missing Tuesday's win over Charlotte because of a thumb issue.

The Lakers (38-11) picked up yet another win on Tuesday against the San Antonio Spurs and they've been brilliant all season long. They actually enter this matchup winning 14 of their last 18 games in total. What's truly amazing is the fact that LeBron James is leading the NBA in assists while providing his usual ridiculous scoring and rebounding. He's nearly 20 years into his career and it's hard to argue that he's still not one of the best players in the NBA. He also appears to be playing with serious vigor on the defensive end of the floor too and that's a beautiful pairing with a rim protector like Anthony Davis. Those two have the Lakers looking well on their way to a deep playoff run and fans want to see their team win a championship to honor the late and great Kobe Bryant.

Los Angeles won the first meeting between these teams, 124-115, on January 18. Prior to that, the Rockets won six of their previous seven games over the Lakers.