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The Lakers are securely at the point of the season where winning by any means necessary is the objective. After a pair of easy wins over the Warriors and Kings, they had to grit one out on Tuesday to knock off the Pelicans.
After a very unserious three quarters, the Lakers turned it up to a gear in the fourth that they haven’t reached often this season. Even if it was against the lowly Pelicans, it was a stretch of defensive play that should inspire some confidence in what this team can do moving forward.
As a result, a lot of these grades are going to be pretty funky in this one. How do you grade three bad quarters and one stellar final quarter? Surely, we can all come to the same conclusion and agree on these grades, right?
So, let’s dive into the win. As always, grades are based on expectations for each player. A “B” grade represents the average performance for that player.
LeBron James
33 minutes, 21 points, 7 rebounds, 7 assists, 2 blocks, 5 turnovers, 2 fouls, 8-12 FG, 1-5 3PT, 4-8 FT, +3
LeBron was decent in the first quarter, fantastic to start the second, then faded into the background most of the rest of the game. In short, it’s about the opposite of everyone else in this game.
Grade: A-
Marcus Smart
30 minutes, 10 points, 3 rebounds, 7 assists, 4 steals, 3 blocks, 2 fouls, 3-9 FG, 2-6 3PT, 2-2 FT, +13
This was Smart’s most impactful game of the season. Even on a night when he was just 3-9 from the field, he was all over the place. Seven stocks, seven assists and a huge 3-pointer late in this one. It was just a peak Smart performance.
Grade: A+
Deandre Ayton
25 minutes, 13 points, 8 rebounds, 1 assist, 2 blocks, 2 turnovers, 4 fouls, 6-8 FG, 1-1 FT, -7
While his center counterpart had a fantastic game in his own right, Ayton wasn’t bad. Especially relative to his recent performances, Ayton had a good showing. It wasn’t great, but it was a vast improvement.
Grade: B+
Austin Reaves
37 minutes, 15 points, 8 rebounds, 3 assists, 2 steals, 2 blocks, 5 turnovers, 3 fouls, 4-15 FG, 2-7 3PT, 5-5 FT, -1
Reaves was pretty much the embodiment of this game. For three quarters, he was a mixture of invisible and bad, an alarming trend over recent weeks. But come the fourth quarter, he knocked down a pair of threes, had a big stop on Zion Williamson that nearly tore his arm off.
Man, those three quarters were so bad, though.
Grade: C-
Luka Dončić
38 minutes, 27 points, 10 rebounds, 7 assists, 1 block, 7 turnovers, 2 fouls, 10-22 FG, 3-10 3PT, 4-5 FT, +1
As is often the case, Luka was at the center of much of the good and much of the bad. He had seven turnovers, was inefficient shooting the ball and still hit some huge shots down the stretch, including the game-sealing three.
Grade: B+
Rui Hachimura
19 minutes, 2 points, 2 rebounds, 1 foul, 0-4 FG, 0-4 3PT, 2-2 FT, -6
A very quiet game from Rui, who never looked like he had much of a rhythm and, as a result, didn’t factor into this one in the fourth, where he never played.
Grade: F
Luke Kennard
21 minutes, 9 points, 2 rebounds, 1 assist, 2 turnovers, 3-5 FG, 2-3 3PT, 1-1 FT, +16
For as bad as Rui was, Luke stepped up in his place. The Lakers haven’t had that luxury this season, having multiple players off the bench who can provide a scoring punch. But Kennard has fit in seamlessly, to the point that he was closing the game and knocking down big shots.
Grade: B+
Jaxson Hayes
23 minutes, 8 points, 6 rebounds, 1 assist, 2 blocks, 1 foul, 3-4 FG, 2-2 FT, +16
What a game from Hayes, and not in any way that would be expected. The box score isn’t going to do any sort of justice for him as it was his defense, shockingly, that stood out most. He was incredible on Zion down the stretch, as was the whole team, helping the Lakers get stop after stop.
Grade: A+
Jake LaRavia
15 minutes, 5 points, 2 rebounds, 2 assists, 1 steal, 2-4 FG, 1-2 3PT, +10
Another solid LaRavia outing, albeit in short minutes. With Kennard and Rui — except on Tuesday — as the scoring options, LaRavia is more properly slotted into a role where his scoring feels more like a bonus than a necessity.
Grade: B-
JJ Redick
Redick did a good job of refocusing his group when it looked like things were really spiraling out of control through the first three quarters. The officials had taken center stage, but LA regrouped, put together one of their best defensive stretches of the season and did it with a lineup mixed with bench players and starters.
Grade: B+
Tuesday’s DNPs: Kobe Bufkin, Bronny James, Maxi Kleber, Dalton Knecht, Adou Thiero, Jarred Vanderbilt
Tuesday’s inactives: Drew Timme, Nick Smith Jr., Chris Mañon
You can follow Jacob on Twitter at @JacobRude or on Bluesky at @jacobrude.bsky.social.