After they had a very poor and lackadaisical effort in Game 2 that resulted in a 27-point loss, the Los Angeles Lakers were being doubted by some observers and even their fans heading into Game 3 at home.
Early on, it looked like perhaps those doubters had a point. Los Angeles scored the first six points of the contest and jumped out to a 13-6 lead, but an 18-4 run late in the first quarter put the Warriors in front, and they went up by 11 with 7:53 left in the second quarter.
However, the Lakers woke up just in time. They scored 13 unanswered points in the second quarter to regain the lead, and overall it was a 30-8 run that gave them a 59-48 halftime lead. They went on that run by activating their defense, which led to 12 first-half turnovers by Golden State, as well as by attacking the paint more and getting out in transition.
A 10-0 run by Los Angeles late in the third period gave it an 18-point lead heading into the final frame, and the game was no longer in doubt, as it took a 2-1 series lead with a 127-97 decision, making up for its Game 2 setback.
As was the case in their Game 1 victory, the Lakers had a big advantage at the free throw line, attempting 37 foul shots to just 17 for Golden State. Stephen Curry and Klay Thompson were largely held in check, as the two combined for 38 points two days after Thompson scored 30 by himself.
The Purple and Gold now have the opportunity to put a stranglehold on this series by winning Game 4, which will take place on Monday.
Anthony Davis: A
Davis got back to his usual self in Game 3. He started off somewhat slow from the field, as he got the bulk of his early points from the free throw line. But he had a very strong first half, and he was fairly dominant not just offensively but also defensively.
He blocked four shots and had three steals, and he got some additional deflections while deterring players such as Curry and Thompson from attempting shots near the rim. Unlike earlier in the series, Davis came out on higher drop coverage when the Warriors ran pick and rolls, but he and his teammates also recovered well afterward when an additional pass was made.
The superstar big man finished with 25 points on 7-of-10 field-goal shooting and 11-of-12 from the charity stripe plus 13 rebounds.
Jarred Vanderbilt: C
In 15 minutes, Vanderbilt got five rebounds, but he went 0-of-5 from the field and missed all three of his 3-pointers. Teams are ignoring him offensively on the perimeter, and he continues to have trouble finishing in traffic near the rim.
Vanderbilt will need to put in serious work on his outside shot and shooting form during the offseason. However, it is clear he has been an outstanding revelation defensively for the Lakers.
LeBron James: B-plus/A-minus
James did not attempt his first shot until 8:02 left in the second quarter, and he didn’t score his first basket until 5:22 was left in the period. Until then, he was exclusively looking to dish the ball out, especially off drives to the basket. Was this by design, or because the Warriors did a good job of converging on him when he got into the paint?
But he did manage to end the first half with 10 points, along with seven assists. James finished the game with 21 points on 6-of-11 shooting, eight rebounds and eight assists, and for the second straight game, he was able to connect from long distance by hitting 2-of-4 from 3-point range.
Once again, the Lakers kept James’ minutes down — he played just 32 minutes after being on the court for 28 minutes in Game 2, which should serve him well moving forward.
D'Angelo Russell: A-minus
With his teammates cold to start the game, Russell was the hot hand early, making his first four shots overall, which included three 3-pointers. He carried L.A.’s offense early until his teammates warmed up, and he ended up with 21 points on 8-of-13 overall shooting and 5-of-8 from downtown.
Russell did commit five turnovers, but he also had five assists. So far in this series, the Lakers have done a good job of limiting their mistakes, as they gave the ball away only 12 times on Saturday.
Austin Reaves: D
Once again, Reaves played poorly, especially on the offensive end. He started the game guarding Curry, and it didn’t seem to work well, as Curry shot effectively in the first quarter.
Reaves missed all five of his shots in the first half, and he mostly settled for long jump shots. Some have speculated that perhaps he is dealing with an unspecified injury, but perhaps he’s simply in a slump during his first postseason appearance.
He played somewhat better in the second half, going 2-of-3 from the field and hitting a 3-pointer. He finished the game with 10 points, two rebounds, two assists and two steals.
Rui Hachimura: C-plus/B-minus
The Lakers didn’t look to Hachimura much offensively in this game. He didn’t take his first shot or score his first points until 8:15 left in the fourth quarter, and overall he shot 2-of-3 from the field and scored just five points in 16 minutes.
But the fact the team won so easily with very little production from Hachimura shows how much depth it has.
Dennis Schroder: B
Schroder gave Los Angeles a lift off the bench with 12 points on 4-of-9 overall shooting, and he was accurate from deep, hitting 3-of-6 from beyond the arc. This is the type of offensive production the team will need from him more often than not if it is to seriously challenge for the NBA championship over the next several weeks.
Lonnie Walker IV: A
Surprisingly, Walker came into the game with 4:05 left in the first quarter for Reaves. He went just 1-of-3 from the field in his 12 first-half minutes, but he played some good defense on Curry, and he even blocked one of the Warriors superstar’s shot attempts while getting two steals by halftime.
Overall, the guard scored 12 points on 4-of-6 field-goal shooting and 2-of-4 from 3-point land while adding four rebounds and two steals in 24 minutes. It will be interesting to see if he will make his way back into head coach Darvin Ham’s rotation moving forward.
Troy Brown Jr.: C
In nine minutes, Brown made one of his two shots and had two points, two rebounds and one assist.
Tristan Thompson: C-plus/B-minus
Thompson got six minutes on the court in garbage time, and he scored a bucket on a dunk while grabbing three rebounds, two of them coming off the offensive glass.
Shaquille Harrison: A
The 29-year-old journeyman guard proved he can play a little bit on Saturday. In nine minutes he scored nine points on 4-of-5 shooting, which included a 3-pointer, plus four assists, and he did a good job of attacking the paint off the dribble.
Max Christie: A
Christie did well in six garbage-time minutes, making all three of his shots and adding two rebounds and two assists.
Malik Beasley: D-minus
Despite getting six minutes on the court in garbage time, Beasley continued to struggle to find the basket. He missed both of his shot attempts, and his only contribution was one rebound.
