Considering how tough they’ve been in recent seasons and what point of the season they are at, there shouldn’t be many complaints about the Lakers beating the Raptors on Friday.

But it would also be fair to say that they turned a game that looked like it would be an easy win into something much more difficult. After leading by nearly 30 points in the first half, the Lakers needed to pull out a win.

In many ways it was reminiscent of last season. I think it’s fair to say that there are plenty of rational reasons to give the team some time to learn together in this new system so as not to go overboard on Friday’s win.

But the PTSD was strong.

So let’s dive into victory. As always, the numbers are based on each player’s expectations. A “B” grade represents that player’s average performance.

Anthony Davis

36 minutes, 38 points, 12 rebounds, 2 assists, 3 steals, 2 blocks, 14-20 FG, 10-11 FT, +7

What a dominant display. Just completely dominant. AD did that in several ways on Friday, including repeatedly leaking for easy baskets.

It also felt that on some of his tries, misses and mistakes he was fouled and not called. This could have easily been a 40-point night. It was great to see how he not only played attacking, but also played centrally.

Grade: A+

Rui Hachimura

33 minutes, 9 points, 5 rebounds, 1 assist, 3-12 FG, 2-5 3PT, 1-1 FT, -6

This was a very difficult task for Rui. While I appreciate the mentality he had when attacking the rim, he has to mix some things up because he gets blocked at least once a game when he gets there.

To his credit, the two fourth-quarter 3-pointers he knocked down were huge shots. That also appeals to his mentality. And it will affect my grade quite a bit because those were some pressure 3-pointers even if they were open, given the context of the game and his struggles up to that point.

Grade: C+

Le Bron James

36 minutes, 27 points, 6 rebounds, 10 assists, 1 steal, 9-17 FG, 5-8 3PT, 4-6 FT, +11

A nice rebound play from LeBron after dealing with illness all week and not looking at himself. He also scored some very timely three-pointers in the second half.

It felt like every post-up from LeBron ended in a missed shot. Hopefully, with an extra day off before playing in Detroit, he can get back to 100%. But if sub-100% LeBron gives you 6/27/10 at age 40, you’ll laugh every time you take that.

Quality: A-

D’Angelo Russell

32 minutes, 19 points, 3 rebounds, 6 assists, 7-13 FG, 3-6 3PT, 2-2 FT, +14

This was almost safely D’Lo’s best game of the season. While he had moments as a playmaker this season, his scoring was non-existent.

He found his rhythm on Friday, including a couple of big buckets in the fourth quarter. Hopefully this will jump-start his season, as his value will drop significantly if he doesn’t score.

Quality: A-

Austin Reaves

34 minutes, 20 points, 1 rebound, 6 assists, 2 steals, 1 block, 4-13 FG, 0-6 3PT, 12-14 FT, -3

In the first half, I thought Reaves played well as he was 4-6 from the field and missed his only three-point attempt. But whether it was the knee/ankle injury he suffered just before half-time or something else, he shot the ball miserably in the second half.

And yet he found a way to get to the line repeatedly and play his way to a 20-point game. It was ugly, it was James Harden-esque, but it was effective and the Lakers needed it.

Grade: B-

Jaxson Hayes

15 minutes, 4 points, 6 rebounds, 2 blocks, 1-1 FG, 2-2 FT, +2

I generally liked Jaxson’s energy that night. But his minutes also coincided with seemingly bleeding points for the Lakers. I would attribute some of that to the Lakers giving up a lot of baseline backcuts that he couldn’t stop at the rim. Overall, the Lakers defense needs to get a lot better.

Figure; b

Gabe Vincent

21 minutes, 2 points, 3 rebounds, 2 assists, 1-6 FG, 0-4 3PT, -4

I want to believe that adapting to a new system is a process for everyone. And I want to believe Vincent will need some time after essentially missing an entire season.

But man, he really undermines a lot of the optimism. That was a rough showing. While every Laker had at least one stretch where they played well, Vincent just struggled through it.

The best thing for Vincent is that Jarred Vanderbilt isn’t healthy. Otherwise, his spot in the rotation could be in jeopardy.

Grade: F

Max Christie

13 minutes, 7 points, 5 rebounds, 1 assist, 1-1 FG, 5-5 FT, +7

It was nice to see Christie have a positive game for perhaps the first time this regular season. That most of it ended up at the free throw line may not be the most ideal outcome, but beggars can’t be choosers.

And please, someone, someone, have a discussion with Max about not going to the edge with both hands every time.

Grade: B+

Dalton Knecht

19 minutes, 5 points, 2 rebounds, 1 assist, 2-5 FG, 1-3 3PT, +4

Knecht starts to figure some things out and it’s fun to watch. There will be an adjustment period as he learns how to contribute to real NBA players and not the garbage year end guys.

But there are still moments and flashes that give a lot of optimism.

Grade: B

Bronnie James

Why did he check in? Was it because the fans were singing to him? Let’s not make a thing out of this.

JJ Redick

In a game like this with such a big comeback, a lot of the focus is on using timeouts to stop runs. I didn’t really have any complaints there. Every timeout felt like it came at the right time, but he also held them at times and let the Lakers figure some things out.

He also tweaked the rotation to great success, mixing things up to put Austin and LeBron together and D’Lo and AD together. It helped the team hold on at the end of the first quarters when they were mostly getting beaten down.

Quality: A-

Friday’s DNPs: Cam Reddish

Friday’s inactives: Jalen Hood-Schifino, Christian Koloko, Maxwell Lewis, Quincy Olivari, Armel Traore, Jarred Vanderbilt, Christian Wood