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Grades for LeBron James, Austin Reaves in Lakers win vs Raptors
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Grades for LeBron James, Austin Reaves in Lakers win vs Raptors

The atmosphere was pretty raucous on Sunday as Anthony Davis walked off the floor with only one eye open on Sunday.

The Lakers were locked in another hard-fought game against the Raptors and trailed for most of the first half. When AD retired in a game the Lakers were down by three, it felt like the harbinger of a big run in Toronto and a frustrating home loss.

Instead, LeBron James, Austin Reaves and Jaxson Hayes have all taken a big step forward. A triple-double from LeBron, 22 second-half points from Reaves and a season-high 12 points from Hayes paved the way for the Lakers to not only win, but pull away in the fourth quarter.

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

26 minutes, 22 points, 4 rebounds, 3 assists, 1 steal, 2 blocks, 6-8 FG, 2-2 3PT, 8-10 FT, -3

Getting 22 points while not even playing the last 18 minutes is impressive. But the biggest concern is his availability in the future. Head coach JJ Redick did not have an update after the game, but the Lakers will benefit from an extra day off since they don’t play again until Wednesday.

I might have wanted a little more from AD on the board, but Jakob Poeltl was frustratingly good on Sunday.

It’s also time to wear goggles, AD.

Quality: A-

Rui Hachimura

32 minutes, 4 points, 5 rebounds, 2 steals, 1 block, 2-11 FG, 0-5 3PT, +6

Against every team not based in Toronto, Rui is shooting 37-77 (48%) from the field and 13-22 (48%) from the three-point line. Against the Raptors, he went 5-23 (22%) from the field and 2-10 (20%) from range in a ten-day span.

He can be thankful he won’t be playing in Toronto again this year.

Grade: D-

Le Bron James

35 minutes, 19 points, 10 rebounds, 16 assists, 1 steal, 6-14 FG, 0-3 3PT, 7-7 FT, +13

Maybe it’s just LeBron slowly working his way into the game. Maybe it’s the fact that he’s 39 years old. But LeBron has started slow in a number of games this year before finishing strong.

Especially on Sunday he turned it up a notch when AD left. He sensed the moment, knew he had to fill a void and took over completely.

Grade: A

Cam Reddish

29 minutes, 11 points, 2 rebounds, 1 assist, 1 steal, 5-7 FG, 1-3 3PT, +7

I’m still skeptical about the long-term viability of the Reddish in the starting lineup, but in the short term it works. On Sunday he had some nice finishes around the rim that are almost certainly not durable.

There are worse things to do when Reddish golf is playing well. The hope is that Redick will be better able to pull the plug when something goes wrong, not when it goes wrong.

Quality: A-

Austin Reaves

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

The first half was pretty sad from Reaves. He was used a lot defensively and this seemed to influence his game offensively. But he also made a big leap with AD out.

Along with LeBron, Reaves took over in the fourth and ensured the Lakers wouldn’t get another win over Toronto.

Grade: A+

Jaxson Hayes

21 minutes, 12 points, 6 rebounds, 1 assist, 1 block, 4-6 FG, 4-6 FT, +21

A huge second half for Hayes, who played 14 of the last 18 minutes after AD left with two minutes he didn’t play, which was rubbish.

In short, it was a huge effort from him in the second half. His team-best plus-minus of +21 is a very good indication of the impact he had on Sunday.

Grade: A+

D’Angelo Russell

27 minutes, 15 points, 2 rebounds, 1 assist, 1 steal, 6-13 FG, 3-9 3PT, +18

I think some changes could be made if Jarred Vanderbilt is healthy that could allow D’Lo to return to the starting lineup, but he has been good off the bench the last two games.

Whether he starts or comes off the bench, as long as he makes shots, he will get plenty of minutes.

Grade: B+

Gabe Vincent

18 minutes, 5 points, 1 rebound, 1 steal, 2-5 FG, 1-3 3PT, +13

I thought this was one of Gabe’s best games of the season. His point total doesn’t really reflect that, but his plus-minus does. He seemed more committed and impactful offensively and made some plays defensively.

Now stack a few good games together.

Grade: C+

Dalton Knecht

14 minutes, 5 points, 1 rebound, 2 assists, 2-4 FG, 1-2 3PT, +14

Another player who played a number of strong games in a row last weekend. The statistics did not show that on Friday, but they did better on Sunday. The only three-pointer he hit was a huge three-pointer for momentum.

Hopefully that will pull him out of his slump and allow him to return to his flamethrower form from preseason.

Grade: B

JJ Redick

Did I criticize Redick in our Playback stream because his challenge was immediately proven wrong? Who knows, really?

Grade: B+

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

You can follow Jacob on Twitter at @JacobRude.