Los Angeles Lakers vs. Phoenix Suns: Postgame Grades and Analysis

The Los Angeles Lakers (13-15) got blown out by the Phoenix Suns (17-10) at US Airways Center Monday, 117-90.

The Lakers' 13th different starting rotation in the 28th game of the season didn't help slow down an upstart Suns squad. They trailed by 13 points at halftime and lost by 27.

Miles Plumlee punished Pau Gasol and the Lakers on the inside en route to 17 points and 20 rebounds to lead the way for the Suns. Eric Bledsoe was three assists shy of a triple-double, and the tandem of Gerald Green and Marcus Morris off the bench rained down threes (they made 11 between them).

Nick Young provided a spark for the Lakers by scoring 10 points in the second quarter, but Purple and Gold didn't come ready to play against a very competitive Suns squad.

Key Player Grades

Pau Gasol, Los Angeles Lakers, Center

Pau Gasol returned to the Lakers' starting lineup after missing the previous game against the Golden State Warriors with an upper respiratory infection. He described the illness by saying, "I've been having some issues breathing," per Shahan Ahmed of NBC Los Angeles.

Gasol did not have an easy transition back to the court.

At one point in the third quarter, the Spaniard tried to swing through his defender, Miles Plumlee, but the two ended up knocking heads. Plumlee didn't blink, while Gasol started gushing blood from a cut above his right eye. That pretty much summed up his night.

Gasol was bullied by the Suns' center all night long on both ends of the court—specifically on the glass. He ended up with just 10 points on 4-of-12 shooting. His night ended early, likely because he's still recovering from illness.

Grade: C-

Jodie Meeks, Los Angeles Lakers, Shooting Guard

Jodie Meeks has had a hot hand throughout the 2013-14 season, but it wasn't on display against the Suns on Monday night.

He did have 18 points, but the efficiency wasn't there, as he finished with 6-of-15 shooting.

Grade: C+

Xavier Henry, Los Angeles Lakers, Shooting Guard

Starting at point guard in place of the injured Steve Nash, Steve Blake and Jordan Farmar, Xavier Henry picked up three boneheaded fouls in the first quarter alone (in just six minutes of court time). He fouled Goran Dragic on an and-1, P.J. Tucker on a three-point attempt and Dragic again 90 feet away from the basket.

With the Lakers stretched so thin in the backcourt, the last thing they needed was foul trouble from Henry, but he couldn't help himself early on.

He ended up with 13 points on just 3-of-12 shooting.

Grade: C-

Wesley Johnson, Los Angeles Lakers, Small Forward

Wesley Johnson would have helped the Lakers by asserting himself more in this game.

The 26-year-old looked like he wanted to show his former team that they should have kept him around, but he only shot the ball five times.

Johnson finished 3-of-5 with nine points, four rebounds and three assists.

Grade: B-

Shawne Williams, Los Angeles Lakers, Power Forward

Shawne Williams re-entered the starting lineup for Mike D'Antoni against the Suns, and while he played well, it all amounted to a quiet night.

Williams finished with seven points and six rebounds.

Grade: C

Nick Young, Los Angeles Lakers, Shooting Guard

Nick Young was frustrated early by P.J. Tucker's tenacious defense. He and Tucker received double technicals prior to an inbounds play in the first quarter, before Young got the ball and put on a flopping performance worthy of an Oscar. The phantom foul call, however, helped jumpstart Young's night, as he drained all three free-throw attempts.

He heated up after the altercation with Tucker, scoring 10 points in the second quarter.

Young finished with 19 points, but his 6-of-17 shooting left a lot to be desired.

Grade: C+

Bench, Los Angeles Lakers

As it has all season, the Lakers' second unit provided a nice early spark. Nick Young and company outplayed the Suns bench and cut a hearty second-quarter lead to four points, but the Suns ran away with this game from there.

Aside from Young, the Lakers bench finished 5-of-15 from the field.

Grade: C

Eric Bledsoe, Phoenix Suns, Point Guard

Eric Bledsoe knew entering this game that nobody in the Lakers backcourt would be able to stop him, and he took full advantage with a great night.

The Suns' budding star did a little bit of everything, finishing with 16 points, 11 rebounds and seven assists while shooting 50 percent from the floor.

The former Los Angeles Clipper put up gaudy numbers and made it look downright easy.

Grade: A+

Goran Dragic, Phoenix Suns, Point Guard

Goran Dragic had a quiet night, but he led the Suns offense and finished with 12 points, seven assists, three rebounds and just one turnover.

Overall, just another efficient night for "The Dragon."

Grade: A-

Channing Frye, Phoenix Suns, Power Forward

Admittedly, Channing Frye didn't have his best night against the Lakers.

The big man's ability to spread the floor by knocking down threes has been huge for the Suns offense this year, but Frye couldn't get it going offensively in this one. He finished 1-of-8 from three-point range and 3-of-10 overall.

Despite the offensive struggles, Frye added eight rebounds and two blocks.

Grade: B-

Miles Plumlee, Phoenix Suns, Center

Miles Plumlee dominated the Lakers on the inside. He had nine rebounds in the first quarter, reached a double-double in the second quarter and finished with 17 points, 20 rebounds and two blocks. The highlight of his night, however, was this monster alley-oop dunk on the feed from Eric Bledsoe:

Plumlee bullied Pau Gasol inside on his way to a career night.

Grade: A+

P.J. Tucker, Phoenix Suns, Small Forward

P.J. Tucker continued his usual routine against the Lakers. He played tenacious defense, frustrated his opponents and made some hustle plays along the way.

Of course, that isn't to say Tucker didn't make mistakes. He committed some unnecessary fouls and didn't provide much on offense, but it wasn't a poor performance by any means.

Grade: B-

Gerald Green, Phoenix Suns, Small Forward

Gerald Green continued to do what he does best: come off the bench and drain quick-release threes.

Green cashed in on four three-pointers in the first half and entered halftime with 14 points.

His defense on Nick Young was a big step down from what P.J. Tucker was able to do, but overall it was a great night for the athletic freak of nature.

Grade: A-

Bench, Phoenix Suns

Gerald Green certainly overshadowed what the rest of the Phoenix Suns bench was able to do in this one, but Marcus Morris provided an equal spark with 10 points at halftime and 19 points overall. He drained 5-of-6 three-point attempts.

Rookie Archie Goodwin had a rough game—making the blooper reel with a missed fastbreak dunk—but it was a learning experience for the young guard. He did manage to redeem himself somewhat by making a corner three with two-and-a-half minutes left.

Heck, even Slava Kravtsov got a dunk.

Grade: A

What's Next?

Lakers

The Lakers' next game will be a Christmas Day showdown with the two-time defending champion Miami Heat. It will be televised at 5:00 p.m. ET on ABC.

Without Kobe Bryant and Steve Nash, the Lakers will be severely undermanned against arguably the best team in the NBA. As long as LeBron James, Dwyane Wade and co. don't take the Lakers for granted, this could easily end in a blowout.

With that said, don't underestimate the Lakers' grit and pride.

Suns

The Suns will get a fair amount of rest before they travel to Oakland to take on the Golden State Warriors on Dec. 27. The game will be televised on local stations at 10:30 p.m. ET.

Phoenix won the only meeting between these two teams on Dec. 15, 106-102. The Suns defense held G-State to 42.5 percent shooting, while Eric Bledsoe and Goran Dragic paced Phoenix with a combined 45 points, 12 assists and seven steals.

Bledsoe and Dragic will once again duel with Stephen Curry and Klay Thompson in a showdown between two of the best backcourts in the NBA.