Player Grades: Lakers vs. Rockets

Grading every Lakers player’s performance from the team’s 117-95 loss to the Wolves.

The Lakers waited a really long time to host a Game 1 in Crypto.com Arena. Saturday’s contest was the first time in 13 years they would open a playoff series in front of their home crowd.

They promptly gave fans a game they will quickly hope to forget.

After leading 28-21 after the first quarter, the Lakers were then outscored 64-30 over the next 19 minutes of the game. It was about as shocking a stretch of play the Lakers have had since acquiring Luka Dončić.

On one hand, a playoff series isn’t won or lost in a single game and the 2020 playoffs are a fine example of that. On the other hand, some flags certainly were raised after that performance.

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.

Rui Hachimura

30 minutes, 9 points, 5 rebounds, 2 assists, 3-9 FG, 3-7 3PT, -26

Rui started the game well, but quickly faded into the background. He was the only Laker outside of the Big 3 to hit multiple field goals.

However, going with Gabe over Rui in the second half also helped spur a run. Rui is going to have to step it up in multiple ways in Game 2, but he was hardly the source of the problems in Game 1.

Grade: C+

LeBron James

36 minutes, 19 points, 5 rebounds, 3 assists, 2 steals, 3 blocks, 8-18 FG, 1-5 3PT, 2-2 FT, -22

While he eventually worked his way into the game in the second half, that first half from LeBron was unacceptable. Game 1s are typically feel-out games for him, but that first half wasn’t him feeling things out.

He never looked like he was in a rhythm. He’s also going to have to be a bigger factor on the boards if the Lakers are going to play small.

Grade: D

Jaxson Hayes

8 minutes, 1 point, 3 rebounds, 0-2 FG, 1-2 FT, -11

Hayes ultimately played under ten minutes in this game so he doesn’t receive a grade. It’ll be interesting if that trend continues. The Lakers’ offense needs some variety to it and Hayes offers that, but if he can’t stay on the floor defensively, it’s a moot point.

Austin Reaves

37 minutes, 16 points, 3 rebounds, 3 assists, 5-13 FG, 3-8 3PT, 3-3 FT, -25

Our own Darius Soriano made this point on social media, but considering the stakes, that was about the worst game Austin’s had in years. He’s a bonafide player now, which means expectations come along with that. And for whatever reason, he was absolutely not up to the billing on Saturday.

He had chances and the ball was in his hands plenty. But he never once looked comfortable, and it felt like it had little to do with the Wolves defensive pressure. Truly a bizarre game from Reaves.

Grade: F

Luka Dončić

40 minutes, 37 points, 8 rebounds, 1 assist, 2 steals, 12-22 FG, 5-10 3PT, 8-9 FT, -12

About the only person to show up on the night for the Lakers was Luka. He had everything working for him from the 3-pointer to the mid-range jumper to getting to the rim. He got Rudy Gobert in early foul trouble and it looked set for a great night.

Unfortunately, his teammates did not follow suit.

If there was an area of concern, it would be that he had one assist. As a team, the Lakers only had 15 assists on 33 makes. It’s the fewest assists for the Lakers in any game since December 19, 2022, against the Suns.

Grade: A

Dorian Finney-Smith

33 minutes, 3 points, 3 rebounds, 2 assists, 1-5 FG, 1-3 3PT, -11

A very unimpactful game from DFS, who just didn’t make any sort of notable contributions. He’s going to have to knock down more than a single 3-pointer offensively. He had a nice give-and-go sequence but that was a rare bright spot.

Grade: D+

Gabe Vincent

25 minutes, 3 points, 1 assist, 1 block, 1-3 FG, 1-3 3PT, -2

I actually liked Gabe’s second-half minutes as his presence over Rui allowed the Lakers to keep up with Minnesota defensively were chasing around screens all over the court.

But, like DFS, he’s going to need to do more offensively to be considered a positive moving forward.

Grade: C-

Jarred Vanderbilt

14 minutes, 2 points, 4 rebounds, 2 assists, 1 steal, 1-3 FG, -2

Another guy whose impact outweighed his production. In fact, I thought for stretches of the game, he was the second- or third-best Laker on the floor, which is as much of an indictment on the other guys as it is a compliment for him.

The problem is, he’s still so limited offensively that it remains difficult to play him for long stretches.

Grade: B+

Dalton Knecht, Bronny James, Jordan Goodwin, Shake Milton Alex Len

An impressively bad run for the garbage time group, who went 2-8 from the field in three minutes on the court.

JJ Redick

This felt like JJ diving into the deep end of the pool in this one. The Wolves had a far better scheme offensively and the Lakers really didn’t have much of an answer on that end.

Pair that with LA’s offense looking lost or rudderless for chunks of the night and there’s a lot JJ has to make right before Game 2.

Grade: C-

Saturday’s DNPs: Markieff Morris

Saturday’s inactives: Maxi Kleber

You can follow Jacob on Twitter at @JacobRude or on Bluesky at @jacobrude.bsky.social.