ESPN NBA analyst Kevin Pelton has given the Los Angeles Lakers a mediocre C-minus grade for their midseason performance. The team sits at 25-16, sixth in the Western Conference, but faces concerns over defensive struggles and sustainability. Pelton projects 44.7 wins, slightly below preseason expectations.
The Los Angeles Lakers have experienced an uneven start to the season, prompting ESPN's Kevin Pelton to assign them a C-minus in his midseason grades released on Monday. Pelton noted that the Lakers' current projection aligns closely with preseason expectations of 46.5 wins, now forecasted at 44.7—a decrease of 1.8 games. This comes despite the team winning their first 13 clutch games, a factor Pelton views as troubling for long-term viability.
Offensively, the Lakers rank ninth in the NBA with a 116.7 offensive rating, driven by a resurgent performance from Luka Dončić. However, the team has rarely had both LeBron James and Austin Reaves healthy to support him fully. Defensively, they rank 26th with a 117.4 rating, allowing 116.7 points per game, which Pelton describes as resembling a rebuilding team's effort rather than a contender's.
Their minus-0.8 point differential places them eighth in the West, but closer to 11th-place Portland than seventh-place Golden State. At 25-16, the Lakers trail the top-seeded Oklahoma City Thunder by 9.5 games and have lost five of their past seven contests, including three straight earlier this month. They aim to rebound Tuesday night against the Denver Nuggets.
