Lakers player grades: L.A. escapes New York City with a win
A back-to-back set of games in New York City for the Los Angeles Lakers started out with a loss to the Brooklyn Nets on Monday, as LeBron James and Anthony Davis were held out of action.
On Tuesday, they headed across the East River into midtown Manhattan to take on the New York Knicks at Madison Square Garden, and both teams treated the Tri-State Area crowd to a decent show.
After a somewhat desultory first half, Los Angeles started to turn it on in the third quarter by scoring 34 points. But after taking a seven-point lead midway through the fourth period, it allowed the hometown team to fight back and force overtime.
Rebounding was a problem, as it gave up 13 offensive rebounds and 15 second-chance points, and it also allowed Jalen Brunson, the Knicks’ newest star, to explode for 37 points.
But in overtime, the Lakers took control, outscoring New York 15-9 to take a 129-123 victory. They badly needed this win, as they have been starting to slip away in terms of the Western Conference playoff picture.
Anthony Davis: A
In Davis’ first game in the starting lineup since his right foot stress injury in mid-December, he looked a lot like the Davis of old. He scored 27 points on 9-of-16 shooting from the field and 9-of-11 from the free throw line, while also grabbing nine rebounds and adding two steals and one assist.
With Davis back, the Lakers’ interior defense looks transformed. He didn’t block a single shot, but his mere presence deters opposing players from attempting shots at or near the rim. That allows L.A. to guard the perimeter more effectively since it doesn’t need to collapse as much in the paint.
Rui Hachimura: A-
Hachimura got his first start since being traded to the Lakers last week, and he played very well overall. He shot 8-of-12 from the field, as well as 2-of-4 from 3-point range, to score 19 points, to go along with nine rebounds.
The Japan native has been doing a good job of running the floor in transition, and that effort got him three fast-break buckets against the Knicks, two of them coming on dunks.
Defense is a bit of a concern for Hachimura. He doesn’t appear to be a poor defender, but he had some trouble defending without fouling tonight, which led to him committing four fouls.
LeBron James: A-
It wasn’t the most efficient of nights for James, who went 11-of-25 overall, 2-of-8 from downtown and 4-of-7 from the free throw line. But he finished with a triple-double by scoring 28 points, grabbing 10 rebounds and dealing out 11 assists.
James is now 88 points away from tying Kareem Abdul-Jabbar for the most career points in NBA history.
Troy Brown Jr.: B-
After an outstanding outing versus Brooklyn, Brown went 3-of-8 against the Knicks, scoring nine points to go along with five rebounds and three assists in 34 minutes.
Dennis Schroder: B
Schroder has been inconsistent lately, especially offensively, but he was solid on Tuesday with 12 points and six assists in 32 minutes.
He hit one of the biggest shots of the game when he connected on a 3-pointer with 3:14 left in overtime to put L.A. up for good.
Thomas Bryant: B-
Bryant’s minutes have gone down since the return of Davis, but he still managed to score nine points in 16 minutes while going perfect from the field and the charity stripe.
However, he got only one rebound, an area in which he often excels.
Russell Westbrook: A
Westbrook had a pretty efficient night, shooting 7-of-13 from the floor, although he was just 2-of-5 on free throws. Still, he finished with 17 points, eight assists, six rebounds and three steals while committing only one turnover.
He keyed the Lakers’ overtime run by notching three assists and hitting a dagger jumper with 1:17 left.
Lonnie Walker IV: F
In his third game back from injury, Walker simply didn’t get it done. He was 1-of-6 and missed all four of his 3-point attempts, giving him just two points and one rebound in 13 minutes.
Max Christie: B+
Christie immediately made an impact by playing some tenacious defense and hitting 2-of-3 from downtown. He ended up with six points and two rebounds in 13 minutes, although he did commit five fouls.
