Realistically, over the remainder of his career, how many games do you think Luka Dončić will lose to the Mavericks? It won’t be double digits, but will it be more than five? Will you be able to count on one hand the number of losses he has to Dallas between now and the end of his playing days?
Yet again on Friday, he had a huge game against his former team, though Austin Reaves had the biggest game of the night. Together, they combined for 73 points and powered the Lakers to a sixth-straight win.
They still aren’t a well-oiled machine as they continue to integrate LeBron James into the mix. But they’re winning games while figuring things out, which remains the most encouraging and exciting part of the early part of the season.
So, let’s dive into the win. As always, grades are based on expectations for each player. A “B” grade represents the average performance for that player.
34 minutes, 13 points, 5 rebounds, 7 assists, 1 steal, 2 turnovers, 1 foul, 5-13 FG, 2-6 3PT, 1-4 FT, +13
No, you updated the pre-write for LeBron failing to reach 10 points for the first time in almost 1,300 games. It was a slow first half before a brief spurt in the second half got him over the 10-point barrier. Outside of that, it was a pretty mundane game statistically, which begs the question…
Is LeBron the third option on the team right now? And how long will that last?
36 minutes, 14 points, 4 rebounds, 1 steal, 2 turnovers, 1 foul, 5-13 FG, 4-8 3PT, +10
This was trending to be one of the worst nights of the year for Rui, but he came alive in the second half with some big 3-pointers. It still wasn’t a great game, but there is something impressive about Rui’s ability to not have his number called, then step up and immediately knock down shots.
37 minutes, 17 points, 8 rebounds, 2 assists, 1 steal, 2 blocks, 2 turnovers, 1 foul, 8-9 FG, 1-2 FT, +18
It was really just great to see Ayton back on the court. Friday was always going to be a tough battle in the paint against a massive Mavs frontcourt, but Ayton’s team-best plus-minus of +18 was indicative of his impact in the game.
41 minutes, 38 points, 8 rebounds, 3 assists, 1 turnover, 2 fouls, 12-15 FG, 6-8 3PT, 8-9 FT, +3
The positive regression to the mean for Reaves and Luka continued on Friday, particularly with Austin as he had some absurd shot-making. There was no doubt that Austin’s start to the season was legit, but it was still nice to see it come in a game that also featured Luka and LeBron.
40 minutes, 35 points, 5 rebounds, 11 assists, 1 block, 4 turnovers, 4 fouls, 10-18 FG, 4-9 3PT, 11-11 FT, +15
How do you have a “quiet” 35 points? It wasn’t necessarily quiet, but it was second fiddle to Austin’s night. Surely, Luka won’t hear about that from his backcourt mate.
14 minutes, 2 rebounds, 1 turnover, 1 foul, -5
The Lakers’ bench was pretty meh on Friday, including a bad night from LaRavia. It’s the first time he’s went scoreless this year and hopefully the last.
12 minutes, 6 points, 2 rebounds, 1 assist, 1 block, 1 turnover, 3 fouls, 3-4 FG, -8
Jaxson was one of the best players off the bench, though he didn’t have a particularly great night either. He had a big dunk in the first half, but was much quieter after that.
23 minutes, 6 points, 3 assists, 4 fouls, 2-3 FG, 2-3 3PT, +7
A nice game from Gabe, who played some important minutes at the end of each half. His value largely comes down to whether he’s making his shots, but he did add some playmaking on Friday, too.
Maxi played just one stint in the second quarter in this one and that’s all he needed to play to know it wasn’t his night.
Very smart from JJ to tell Austin and Luka to not miss shots in this game. Not sure why he hasn’t tried that before. I’ll retroactively dock his grades in those games.
Friday’s DNPs: Bronny James, Dalton Knecht, Adou Thiero, Jarred Vanderbilt
Friday’s inactives: Marcus Smart, Drew Timme, Nick Smith Jr., Chris Mañon
You can follow Jacob on Twitter at @JacobRude or on BlueSky at @jacobrude.bsky.social.
