Grades for LeBron, Luka Dončić, Austin Reaves in Lakers loss vs Celtics

On paper, no one game is more important than another across 82 games in the regular season. A result in October will matter as much as a result in March.

But we know that’s not true.

For the Lakers, there are two games that always matter more than the rest. There have been many rivalries that have come and gone but the Celtics games have always carried more weight.

After getting blown out in Boston under not-so-great circumstances, Sunday was supposed to be the chance for the Lakers to get some sweet revenge. They were at full strength, at home and haven’t left the state for a game since the very beginning of the month. Everything was set up nicely for, at the very least, a competitive game.

Instead, the fourth quarter featured Jaylen Brown getting MVP chants, Payton Pritchard talking trash after an endless barrage of threes and Neemias Queta slamming home lobs without a hint of resistance.

With a chance to not only get some revenge but match up with one of the top teams in the league, the Lakers chose the path they are all too willing to head down this year as they let go of the rope entirely. The Celtics bullied them from the very start to win the mental game and then hustled all over the court to win the actual game, too.

If the Lakers didn’t have enough to beat the Celtics, that’d be one thing. But putting forth that effort against that team on your home floor? Absolutely inexcusable.

It matters not how poor the officiating was in the first half. When the rubber met the road, the Lakers completely folded on Sunday, a trait that is starting to become commonplace for them.

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.

None of those qualifiers will matter, though, because everyone is getting the same grade after that performance.

34 minutes, 20 points, 4 rebounds, 5 assists, 2 steal, 1 block, 1 turnover, 9-21 FG, 1-5 3PT, 1-1 FT, -14

LeBron was one of the victims of a terrible missed call. He spent the rest of the game missing layup after layup.

22 minutes, 1 rebound, 4 assists, 4 fouls, 0-7 FG, 0-5 3PT, -4

This is the worst case scenario for Smart. No team is more familiar with his shortcomings than the Celtics, who chose to completely disregard him offensively. He punished them by careening shots off the rim in their direction.

25 minutes, 4 points, 7 rebounds, 1 assist, 1 steal, 1 block, 1 turnover, 4 fouls, 2-6 FG, -15

The Lakers are getting the worst version of Ayton, who is not even taking mid-range shots. But at least he is also missing shots at the rim, too.

33 minutes, 15 points, 7 rebounds, 2 assists, 2 steals, 1 block, 1 turnover, 1 foul, 4-10 FG, 1-4 3PT, 6-7 FG, -14

Reaves probably wasn’t far off from being an All-Star with the injury replacements earlier this month. He definitely strengthened his case tonight by being the fifth or sixth best player on the floor.

33 minutes, 25 points, 5 rebounds, 3 assists, 1 block, 2 turnovers, 4 fouls, 9-22 FG, 4-7 3PT, 3-6 FT, -21

Fans who criticize Luka for complaining to the officials too much will be feasting after this game. Valid or not, it’s a miracle he didn’t get a technical.

The only thing saving him from the same grade as his teammates is that he only played five minutes before exiting the game and not returning with an ankle injury.

24 minutes, 4 points, 3 rebounds, 2 assists, 1 steal, 1 block, 1 turnover, 1 foul, 2-2 FG, -18

LaRavia had maybe the highlight of the game for the Lakers with a big dunk after driving the lane. If you can name one other thing he did in this game other than turn the ball over in the backcourt, that’d be impressive.

22 minutes, 9 points, 3 rebounds, 1 steal, 1 turnover, 2 fouls, 3-4 FG, 1-2 3PT, 2-2 FT, -9

How can a player who is so good at 3-point shooting be so resistant to actually putting up 3-pointers?

21 minutes, 5 points, 2 rebounds, 1 foul, 2-7 FG, 1-4 3PT, -13

Rui did a fantastic job in this game of playing off the other stars to get open looks that he missed repeatedly.

11 minutes, 3 points, 5 rebounds, 1 turnover, 2 fouls, 1-3 FG, 1-1 3PT, -1

The fourth quarter starting with Vando driving the lane, failing to eurostep around his defender and putting up a contested layup with his right hand should have been the point when everyone turned the game off.

Dalton Knecht, Maxi Kleber, Kobe Bufkin

Thirteen months ago, Dalton Knecht scored 13 points with three threes in 14 minutes in a 21-point win over the Celtics, in case you were wondering how dramatically he’s fallen off.

With the game on the brink of getting away from the Lakers just past the midway point of the fourth, the Lakers had Luka on the floor alone with Reaves and LeBron on the bench. Don’t worry, though, because Redick brought them back in the game after a Brown and-one made it an 18-point game with right around five minutes to go.

Michael Smith, Pat Fraher, Curtis Blair

What was your favorite missed call of the game from this officiating crew? Was it the first missed goaltending? The second? Personally, I think it’s the sequence where Michael Smith missed Brown elbowing Smart in the face, then called technicals on both Reaves and Smart in the aftermath.

Sunday’s inactives: Chris Mañon, Drew Timme, Nick Smith Jr., Bronny James, Adou Thiero

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