Well, that was a game that happened.
The Lakers were due a schedule loss, even despite basically having one in Denver on Friday. But this game, their sixth in eight days, was one of the most predictable schedule losses since the lockout-shortened season when teams were playing back-to-back-to-backs.
There isn’t a lot to take away from this game. The Lakers played 10 games, two of them were two-way players and only about a small handful of them will play in meaningful games in the postseason.
So, let’s dive into the loss. As always, grades are based on expectations for each player. A “B” grade represents the average performance for that player.
And especially in this one, let’s give some grace. Nobody was in a normal role on Thursday.
Dalton Knecht
31 minutes, 17 points, 4 rebounds, 3 assists, 1 steal, 5-14 FG, 3-6 3PT, 4-5 FT, -10
The hope for many, presumably, was that Dalton could come out and shine with plenty of time on the ball available. Instead, he struggled to make shots all game long. Most of his scoring came in garbage time when the game was out of reach.
Grade: B-
Markieff Morris
28 minutes, 9 points, 4 rebounds, 2 assists, 1 block, 3-11 FG, 1-7 3PT, 2-2 FT, +7
Do you know how impressive it is that, in a game the Lakers trailed by 30 at times, Markieff finished with a +7? So, in the 20 minutes Kieff didn’t play, the Lakers were a -36.
Anyway, Kieff’s value at this point in his career is not on the court, and he’s shown that a couple times in the last week.
Grade: C
Jaxson Hayes
16 minutes, 9 points, 5 rebounds, 3 assists, 4-5 FG, 0-1 3PT, 1-2 FT, -5
One of the few Lakers who looked serious in his approach on Thursday. That being said, he had a couple of illegal screens and fouls that brought back memories of the bad times with Hayes on the roster.
Grade: B
Jordan Goodwin
31 minutes, 8 points, 8 rebounds, 5 assists, 1 steal, 2 blocks, 3-8 FG, 2-3 3PT, -18
I think the person who most exemplified being in an outsized role was Goodwin, who struggled from the jump in this one. Eventually, he settled down and found his way but it wasn’t pretty.
Grade: C-
Gabe Vincent
25 minutes, 9 points, 2 rebounds, 4 assists, 3-12 FG, 2-7 3PT, 1-2 FT, -6
Boy, it’s a good thing Gabe won’t ever need to be the primary ballhandler on a team because that was a rough experience on Thursday.
Grade: D+
Shake Milton
23 minutes, 4 points, 6 rebounds, 3 assists, 2-6 FG, 0-1 3PT, -37
Milton fouled out of this game in just over 20 minutes and, honestly, I have a lot of respect for someone fouling out of this game. I wanted to do that and I was just watching.
Grade: C
Trey Jemison
16 minutes, 4 points, 5 rebounds, 2-3 FG, -19
It was a nice return for Jemison, though this now brings him down to just six games remaining before the Lakers will have to make a decision on him.
Grade: B-
Bronny James
30 minutes, 17 points, 3 rebounds, 5 assists, 7-10 FG, 2-4 3PT, 1-1 FT, -36
Bronny was pretty comfortably the best Laker on the court on Thursday, which is quite the accomplishment considering where we were at the beginning of the season. He looked far more comfortable on the ball and playing in the flow of the game.
Grade: A-
Cam Reddish
22 minutes, 2 points, 4 rebounds, 2 steals, 1-6 FG, 0-1 3PT, -17
Another reminder than Cam Reddish ain’t it. This is likely one of his final games in the NBA, let alone the Lakers.
Grade: D
Alex Len
17 minutes, 10 points, 9 rebounds, 1 assist, 1 steal, 4-7 FG, 1-2 3PT, 1-4 FT, -4
Honestly, a surprisingly good game from Len, all things considered. I’m not sure which was more shocking: his putback dunk or his 3-pointer.
Grade: B+
Monday’s inactives: Christian Koloko, LeBron James, Maxi Kleber, Luka Doncic, Rui Hachimura, Austin Reaves, Dorian Finney-Smith, Jarred Vanderbilt
You can follow Jacob on Twitter at @JacobRude or on Bluesky at @jacobrude.bsky.social.
