The Lakes needed a win on Sunday in the worst possible way, no matter who the opponent was. To get the win against an up-and-coming Clippers team that has been one of the best in the league in recent weeks was an even bigger boost.
The way in which the victory was achieved was perhaps the most important factor. It was not LeBron James and/or Anthony Davis who put the team on their backs, it was the whole team.
Of the nine Lakers who played, eight of them scored at least seven points, and the only one who didn’t was Jarred Vanderbilt, who played one of his best Jarred Vanderbilt games of the season.
So let’s assess the win. As always, ratings are based on expectations for each player. A “B” grade represents the average performance of that player.
Cam Reddish:
20 minutes, 7 points, 4 rebounds, 1 assist, 2 steals, 2-6 FG, 2-3 FT, 1-2 FT, -8
It was a night of ups and downs for Reddish, and he seemed to vacillate between the two. A good steal led to a layup from the bottom of the hoop. As he was helping to stop the defense, the bouncing ball bounced off his hands and bounced out of the court.
In the end, his two three-pointers were very big and unexpected. It is also worth noting that he played only 20 minutes after D’Angelo Russell returned. This seems worthy of note.
Grade: B-
LeBron James
38 minutes, 25 points, 8 rebounds, 7 assists, 1 steal, 11-19 shooting, 1-3 shooting, 2-3 shooting, +5
Compared to the previous game, I thought LeBron started off pretty poorly in the first quarter, and except for the beginning and middle of the second quarter, it seemed like he was set up to fail.
But he picked himself up and played on both ends for the rest of the game. The defensive difference was also noticeable on Sunday, as Kawhi Leonard was very decisive when he was closing, Jaren Jackson Jr.
Grade B+
Anthony Davis
39 minutes, 22 points, 10 rebounds, 1 assist, 3 steals, 1 block, 10-15 FG, 0-1 FG, 2-4 FT, -4
The stats don’t tell the whole story of AD on this night. He also came into the game in the second half and made some really big mid-range jumpers after D’Lo action.
But his defense was incredible in the playoffs. The Lakers deployed him on the Clippers’ wings, and he made a number of important stops.
Rudy Gobert will not play this game. It has multiple levels.
Grade A-
Taurean Prince
30 minutes, 13 points, 1 rebound, 2 assists, 1 steal, 4-8 FG, 3-6 3PT, 2-2 FT, -2
Prince has fallen victim to a kind of distorted view where fans focus more on the negative than the positive. To be fair, it’s probably a bad night to point that out, as he had a really bad foul on Norman Powell in the closing minutes of the game.
He also shot 50% on threes and hit the biggest shot of the night, redeeming himself. This season, he is shooting 39.5% from the three-point line and 5.6 attempts per game. He is as reliable a player as the Lakers have had this season.
Grade A-
Austin Reaves
32 minutes, 8 points, 2 assists, 2-5 FG, 0-3 3PT, 4-5 FT, -4
Reaves had a pretty quiet night, as he struggled mightily on offense. Defensively, I thought he played pretty well and did everything he could do, but several times players – namely Kawhi Leonard – shot over him. Does that mean that he should be downgraded if he can do everything he can?
What is undeniable is that the expectations for him are much higher offensively. And that he should have missed in the last attack.
Grade C
D’Angelo Russell
31 minutes, 13 points, 6 assists, 1 steal, 1 block, 5-14 FG, 3-9 FT, +5
A classic tale of two halves. He struggled a lot in the first half, although he had a number of free throws. He shot 1-5 from the field, 0-4 from the three-point line and looked like a player with a lot of rust.
But the first half was enough to get rid of the rust, and in the second half he was a big catalyst for the win, hitting four threes and showing his playmaking ability that the Lakers have been missing. Still, it was a tough first half and probably overshadowed the second half, but at least it ended on a high note.
Grade C+
Jarred Vanderbilt
21 minutes, 2 points, 4 rebounds, 4 assists, 1 steal, 1-3 shooting, 0-1 shooting, +6
As mentioned earlier, this was about the most Vanderbilt has played since he returned from injury, which is a completely immeasurable grade. But his defense was needed, and he was used more as a roller, showing some playmaking ability that could be intriguing going forward.
Grade B+
Christian Wood
16 minutes, 9 points, 10 rebounds, 2 blocks, 4-6 FG, 1-2 3PT, +7
Very strong play from Wood in limited minutes. Against Ivica Zubac, Wood played some great defense and helped clean the boards, finishing off several defensive possessions.
The Wood-Vando pairing in the frontcourt was very interesting in the non-AD minutes, and he really seems to have some potential.
Grade: A-
Max Christie
13 minutes, 7 points, 3 rebounds, 2 blocks, 3-6 FG, 1-1 3PT, +10
I’ll keep saying that there’s no reason for Max to be getting less minutes than Cam at this point. He continues to show some really attractive things, either the ability to rebound from the point guard position, which this team lacks, or the willingness to attack the rim – another thing this team lacks – which leads to big rebounds or big mistakes.
Grade: A-
Darvin Ham
After a rather fiery version of Ham on Friday before and after the game, he returned to his normal character in the press conferences and seemed focused. On Sunday, the rotations made a lot more sense, as there were fewer lineups with no basketball players, fewer minutes for Cam, more minutes for Wood, and the aforementioned Wood-Vando duo.
The only major criticism I have is that he didn’t foul at the end of the game, but it’s not clear whether he told the team not to foul or they didn’t foul. But even that is subjective, to be honest.
Overall, Ham played a good game.
Grade B+
Did not play on Sunday: Jaxson Hayes, Jalen Hood-Schifino, Maxwell Lewis, Dylan Windler
Sunday inactives – Rui Hachimura, Gabe Vincent, Colin Castleton