Grades for LeBron James and Anthony Davis in the Lakers’ loss to the Heat

The Lakers suffered their worst loss of the season on Wednesday night, falling to the Heat 134-93.

Miami jumped out to a double-digit lead early and never looked back, cruising to victory and setting a franchise record with 24 three-pointers.

A 41-point loss should never happen to the Lakers in an NBA game. This loss will either be a low point that starts a turnaround or a sign of a long season ahead for the purple and gold. Let’s hope for the former.

So let’s dive into loss. As always, grades are based on each player’s expectations. The grade “B” represents that player’s average performance.

Anthony Davis

31 minutes, 8 points, 7 rebounds, 5 assists, 1 steal, 3-14 FG, 0-1 3PT, 2-4 FT, -29

Did AD’s variation play for the Lakers against the Heat? Because that would explain his performance. This was a terrible game for the Lakers. He’s been great most of the season, but in this game he was ineffective from the field and disinterested defensively and offensively. You can add this game to the short list of AD’s terrible performances as a Laker.

Grade: F

Rui Hachimura

26 minutes, 14 points, 3 rebounds, 1 assist, 1 block, 6-7 FG, 1-2 3PT, 1-1 FT, -27

Hachimura is one of the few Lakers who did their job on Wednesday night. He attacked the basket aggressively, had some nice finishes and only missed one shot.

He suffered a few burns defensively, but compared to the poor performance of everyone else on the roster Wednesday, Hachimura was the least of the Lakers’ problems.

Grade: B

LeBron James

29 minutes, 29 points, 5 rebounds, 8 assists, 1 steal, 12-18 FG, 1-4 3PT, 4-4 FT, -21

After some poor LeBron games, including a 10-point performance against the Wolves, he responded with 29 points in 29 minutes. His defense wasn’t sensational, but this game reminded us that when LeBron is active and engaged, he is still a force to be reckoned with.

Now let’s look at these types of nights on a regular basis.

Grade: B

D’Angelo Russell

30 minutes, 12 points, 1 rebound, 4 assists, 5-13 FG, 1-4 3PT, 1-1 FT, -25

A turnstile defense and an inefficient offense made the game difficult for Russell.

He can’t play as many minutes when he’s struggling so much on both ends of the floor. The only bright spot was that he only had two turnovers, but otherwise this game is one you want to get past quickly.

Grade: D-

Dalton Knecht

23 minutes, 2 points, 2 rebounds, 1 assist, 2 steals, 1 block, 1-4 FG, 0-2 3PT, -20

This Heat matchup was a bummer by Knecht. Not only did he find it difficult to get a good look at the basket, but he also failed to take action in any other way. His defense was poor, his assists were virtually non-existent and the same goes for his rebounding.

Knecht is a rookie and won’t be perfect, but if he can’t find ways to be positive when the shots aren’t falling, he can’t start for this team.

Grade: F

Armel Traore

13 minutes, 4 points, 5 rebounds, 1 steal, 1 block, 1-5 FG, 0-1 3PT, 2-5 FT, -17

Traore is one of those hard-working guys who always puts in a fair amount of effort and effort. In a game where the Lakers were never in contention, it didn’t matter much or have any impact on the outcome, but he was fine.

Without Christian Wood and Jaxson Hayes, he has proven to be respectable for one or two shifts a night.

Grade: B-

Gabe Vincent

24 minutes, 9 points, 2 rebounds, 3 assists, 3 steals, 3-11 FG, 1-5 3PT, 2-2 FT, -11

When he played against his former team, Vincent played enough to return the favor. Instead, he went 3-for-11 from the field, and his only highlights were a few steals and a nice 3-pointer.

Vincent has had some truly terrible games, so this is far from his worst, but that doesn’t mean he played well either.

Grade: D+

Max Christie

26 minutes, 11 points, 7 rebounds, 5 assists, 1 steal, 4-8 FG, 1-1 3PT, -19

Christie has proven that he belongs in the rotation, and Wednesday’s game is a perfect example of that. He stayed engaged, shooting 50% from the field and grabbing seven rebounds, which was AD’s most on the team.

It’s good to see him playing well after a poor start and hopefully Christie will gain more confidence after this game.

Grade: B+

Cam Reddish

15 minutes, 0 points, 2 assists, 1 block, 0-3 FG, 0-2 3PT, -16

It’s been said before, but it’s worth repeating: Reddish is a decent defender, but he’s not good enough to justify the number of minutes he gets.

The Lakers struggle offensively and defensively and can’t give 15 minutes to anyone who scores zero points, unless that person is Dennis Rodman. It’s not reddish.

Grade: F

Christian Koloko

13 minutes, 4 points, 4 rebounds, 2-3 FG, -12

It’s hard to be mad at Koloko knowing he didn’t have a training camp because he was waiting for NBA medical clearance.

In a short space of time, he has proven that he can bring energy and commitment to the team in the center position. Ideally, he shouldn’t be playing, but the Lakers are clearly in a less than ideal situation.

He’s doing his best.

Grade: C-

Maxwell Lewis

Lewis played during garbage time and didn’t log enough minutes to warrant a grade. He did some cardio and missed the two shots he made.

JJ Redick

After the game, Redick mentioned taking responsibility, which is nice to hear, but talk is cheap. The Lakers are disastrous on defense, and with the offense struggling to score, the coach’s statement will quickly lead to eye-rolling from fans if wins don’t happen.

As the leader of this team, he receives a grade that reflects Los Angeles’ overall performance.

Grade: F

You can follow Edwin on Twitter at @ECreates88.