If Saturday’s win over the Grizzlies was the beauty, Monday’s win over the Rockets was the beast.
There was little pretty about that victory. The Lakers Big Three struggled and it was the role players who had to step up in a big way. The team also had one of its best defensive showings in recent weeks to shut the water off for Houston.
In short, it was everything you’d expect from a playoff game.
Those are fast approaching for the Lakers and Monday’s performance was reassuring that this team can win ugly when it absolutely has to.
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.
Rui Hachimura
31 minutes, 7 points, 2 rebounds, 2 steals, 3-10 FG, 1-6 3PT, +0
This was very much not a Rui game as he struggled mightily offensively. I thought he did admirable enough on the defensive end and came up with a big dunk off a LeBron James feed late, but this wasn’t his night.
Grade: C-
LeBron James
38 minutes, 16 points, 8 rebounds, 4 assists, 2 steals, 2 blocks, 5-12 FG, 2-4 3PT, 4-4 FT, +9
Not only was LeBron pretty stinky offensively in this, he also looked like he hadn’t dribbled a basketball at times. He lost the ball trying to take Dillon Brooks to the basket in the fourth, then had a really costly turnover in the final minute.
And yet, he came up with the big aforementioned dime to Rui, hit two clutch free throws and had a huge block late. It wasn’t enough good to overcome the bad, but he still made plays, too.
Grade: C+
Jaxson Hayes
14 minutes, 3 points, 3 rebounds, 1 assist, 1-2 FG, 1-1 FT, -9
It’s interesting that, in arguably the two biggest regular season games of the year over the last three days, Jaxson has played a combined 31 minutes.
Is it a matter of Redick preferring a small ball look? Considering how the offense performed against Memphis and the looks they were creating against Memphis, it’s hard to argue.
Admittedly, I’m not sure he has a lot to offer against Zach Edey and Alpern Şengün. But it’s still a surprise to see how little he’s featured.
Grade: C+
Luka Dončić
38 minutes, 20 points, 6 rebounds, 9 assists, 2 steals, 6-16 FG, 1-7 3PT, 7-9 FT, +7
Luka looks pretty clearly banged up, so the two days rest will come in handy for him. He three ball wasn’t falling for him, which makes some of the step backs he takes hard to swallow.
Again, though, he made the right play over and over, most notably in assisting four of DFS’ six threes of pick-and-pop actions.
Grade: B+
Austin Reaves
39 minutes, 12 points, 8 rebounds, 3 assists, 2 steals, 5-11 FG, 0-3 3PT, 2-2 FT, +8
Of the Lakers’ Big Three, I’d say Austin had the worst game. His jumper was a mess and he never had such of a feel offensively. But that didn’t stop him from doing the dirty work defensively and giving everything he had to secure the win.
Grade: C-
Dorian Finney-Smith
32 minutes, 20 points, 6 rebounds, 3 assists, 2 steals, 3 blocks, 6-13 FG, 6-11 3PT, 2-2 FT, +16
There’s no extra argument you have to make in this one for DFS. He was just enormous in every way on Monday. The Lakers spammed the same ball screen action with him and Luka to create open look after open look for him and he made Houston pay.
Grade; A+
Jarred Vanderbilt
10 minutes, 2 points, 6 rebounds, 1-6 FG, -4
Offensively, it’s still a pain watching Vando try to finish around the rim. And, ultimately, if he can’t fulfill that role in the playoffs, it’s going to hard to keep him on the floor. It’s no surprise that he barely played 10 minutes in this one after struggling so much offensively with the Rockets’ size.
Grade: C-
Gabe Vincent
24 minutes, 20 points, 4 rebounds, 1 assist, 1 steal, 1 block, 6-14 FG, 6-13 3PT, 2-2 FT, +8
While DFS’s shots came from specific actions, Vincent did his work just being a spot-up threat on the weakside most of the time. It’s encouraging that in two really big games — Monday and against the Knicks earlier in the season — he’s stepped up with some huge performances.
It’s safe to say fans will feel comfortable seeing Vincent getting critical playoff minutes.
Grade: A+
Jordan Goodwin
12 minutes, 4 points, 2 rebounds, 1 assist, 2-5 FG, 0-2 3PT, -4
This was a pretty meh Goodwin game even before he had a 10-second span of missing an open 3-pointer, then fouling Fred VanVleet on a 3-pointer on the other end.
His energy play of ripping the ball away from a Rockets player for a layup in the first half saved him a bit.
Grade: D+
Dalton Knecht
Dalton just had one stint in the second quarter. Honestly, it’s with his defensive shortcomings, it’s hard to play him in big games. Giving him one stint to show if he has it offensively is about all he’s going to get, depending on the matchup, come playoff time.
JJ Redick
There’s a lot of consernation in our live game thread about how much Redick prefers small ball lineups. What I would say is that, for as much as the Lakers may give up in size, look at all the open 3-pointers they created by being able to space the floor on Houston. That doesn’t happen with Hayes on the floor.
Grade: B+
Monday’s DNPs: Bronny James, Trey Jemison III, Alex Len, Shake Milton, Markieff Morris
Monday’s inactives: Christian Koloko, Maxi Kleber
You can follow Jacob on Twitter at @JacobRude or on Bluesky at @jacobrude.bsky.social.
