Memphis Grizzlies vs. Los Angeles Lakers: Postgame Grades and Analysis for LA
In a game that lacked offensive firepower, the Los Angeles Lakers couldn't come up with timely buckets down the stretch and fell to the Memphis Grizzlies, 89-86, on their home floor.
Jodie Meeks led the way with a season-high 25 points on 10-of-16 shooting, but the Lakers couldn't overcome a poor shooting night, one that saw them hit on just 43.8 percent of their shots.
The Grizzlies also bested the Lakers on the glass by a margin of 11 rebounds, including a six-board edge on the offensive glass.
Nick Young, Jordan Hill and Pau Gasol all finished in double figures for the Lakers, but it was Zach Randolph who stole the show with a game-high 28 points on 11-of-18 shooting.
Marc Gasol, who was matched up against his older brother Pau all night long, threatened to post his first-career triple-double with 18 points, eight assists and eight boards, and he soundly outplayed his sibling in the win.
With the loss, the Lakers now sit at 4-7 on the season and have lost four of their past five dating back to last Friday.
Point Guard: Steve Blake
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There was nothing flashy about Steve Blake's contributions, but he held true to form, leading the Los Angeles Lakers in assists with 10 while adding nine points and seven rebounds in the loss.
And on a night when Jordan Farmar's struggles persisted, Blake found himself the Lakers' only reliable option at point guard. Fortunately for Mike D'Antoni and Co., Blake looked sharp even if it took him a quarter to get up to speed.
While the loss of Nash hurts the Lakers from a depth standpoint, one has to wonder if the Lakers are actually better off at this point with the more durable Blake running the show for the Purple and Gold, especially on the defensive end, where he limited Mike Conley to 11 points on 4-of-15 shooting.
His chemistry with the team's bigs from a passing standpoint has been mighty impressive over the past week, and one could certainly credit some of Jordan Hill's emergence to Blake's selfless play.
Friday night was the fifth game in a row in which Blake recorded eight or more assists.
Interestingly, the Lakers were a minus-nine with Blake on the floor.
Grade: A-
Shooting Guard: Jodie Meeks
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Coming off of a game against the Denver Nuggets in which he scored three points on 1-of-5 shooting, Meeks topped that total in a hurry, scoring the Los Angeles Lakers' first five points on Friday night.
One of the few constants on a night when the Lakers offense sputtered, Meeks was good for a team-high 25 points on 10-of-16 shooting and, along with Nick Young, was only one of two Lakers players to finish the first half in double figures (10 points).
The 25 points were a season high for Meeks, who hit on five of his nine attempts from beyond the arc.
In contrast to last season, Meeks looks abundantly more confident, and it's easy to attribute that to some added offensive wrinkles, namely a consistent ability to attack the rim off the dribble.
Once known as simply a catch-and-shoot three-point specialist, Meeks has evolved into a reliable shooting guard who now offers the Lakers multiple offensive dimensions.
Grade: A+
Small Forward: Wesley Johnson
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Starting to sense a trend? Wes Johnson's stat lines have been rather bare of late, as he's now topped double figures just twice in his past eight games.
The Los Angeles Lakers' leader in steals and blocks entering Friday night, Johnson managed just one steal and zero blocks on the night to go with zero points after attempting just one shot all night.
He was the only Lakers starter who failed to register points in the first half and was the only Laker who saw action over the game's first 24 minutes who failed to record a field-goal attempt.
Johnson played the fewest minutes of any Lakers starter, as well, logging just 15 minutes of run.
Grade: F
Power Forward: Jordan Hill
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Averaging 19.5 points and 13 rebounds over his past two games, Hill regressed to the mean slightly on Friday night against the Memphis Grizzlies.
A contributing factor to Hill's struggles was early foul trouble, as the upstart forward picked up two fouls in the game's first three-and-a-half minutes matched up against the physically imposing Zach Randolph, who finished with a game-high 28 points.
Although he did rebound in the second half, Hill wasn't able to impose his will on the Grizzlies' stout frontcourt the way he had against the Denver Nuggets and New Orleans Pelicans, and he finished with 12 points, five rebounds, three blocks and two assists.
Hill would have graded out a tad higher had Randolph not gashed the Lakers repeatedly down the stretch.
Grade: B-
Center: Pau Gasol
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A game that was billed as a matchup between two talented brothers, both Pau and Marc Gasol delivered solid performances at Staples Center.
The siblings traded blows on both ends of the court, and it should come as no surprise that they both finished with double-doubles.
While Marc was more of an offensive catalyst, racking up 18 points and eight assists, Pau held his own, posting 10 points and a game-high 13 rebounds (11 of which came in the first half).
However, the younger also bested the elder from a defensive standpoint, blocking three shots and accruing three steals in 41 minutes while Pau managed just one block.
In a game in which his brother fell just shy of capturing his first-career triple-double, Pau lagged behind due in part to 33.3 percent shooting from the floor.
Grade: B-
Sixth Man: Nick Young
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Ever since being switched out of the starting lineup in favor of Johnson, Nick Young's job has been to come off the bench and create instant offense.
He did so effectively in this one, creating off the dribble time and again on a night when the Los Angeles Lakers struggled against a stingy Memphis Grizzlies defense.
What's even more impressive is that Young scored all 12 of the Lakers' bench points in the first half on 5-of-8 shooting, and he did so matched up against one of the league's best wing defenders in Tony Allen.
Young finished with 18 points on 7-of-14 shooting, and along with Meeks, he was one of the Lakers' few sources of offensive productivity on a night when they sorely lacked it.
The Lakers' sixth man also posted a team-high plus/minus of plus-six.
Grade: B+
Bench
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The league's highest-scoring bench struggled mightily against the Memphis Grizzlies.
Entering the game averaging 49.6 points per game, per HoopsStats, the Los Angeles Lakers' bench mob managed just 30 points.
Not counting Nick Young, Chris Kaman and Shawne Williams were the high men off the pine with six points apiece.
The second unit's struggles were evident early, especially, as they missed their first nine shots from the floor before Young dropped in a three to start the second quarter.
And excluding Young, the foursome comprised of Xavier Henry, Shawne Williams, Jordan Farmar and Chris Kaman combined to miss all 10 of their first-half field-goal attempts.
Kaman was particularly disappointing, managing just three rebounds while shooting 30 percent from the field.
On a positive note, though, Williams made solid second-half contributions, blocking three shots and knocking down two threes.
Both Henry and Farmar were scoreless in the loss.
Grade: D
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