NBA scout says LeBron James, Luka Doncic and Austin Reaves ‘are playing well above their defensive standards’

An NBA scout told Dave McMenamin of ESPN that LeBron James, Luka Doncic and Austin Reaves “are playing well above their defensive standards.”

The Los Angeles Lakers have one of the best defenses in the NBA. 

“Even their biggest defensive liabilities in Reaves, LeBron and Luka, who is only so-so, are playing well above their defensive standards,” a Western Conference scout told ESPN.

The Lakers traded Anthony Davis and Max Christie — two of the best defenders in the NBA — to the Dallas Mavericks for Doncic, who has never been a good defender. 

However, Los Angeles’ defense has been stifling since the Doncic trade. 

“The numbers back up the scout’s assessment of Doncic. Since Feb. 10 with the Lakers, he has given up only 0.81 points per direct isolation against him, which is the third-best mark among 23 players to defend at least 40 iso possessions over that stretch, according to Second Spectrum,” McMenamin wrote. “From Jan. 30 to March 6 — right after Davis’ last game played with the team through just before their four-game slide — the Lakers led the NBA in defensive efficiency. They ranked first in opponent 3-point percentage allowed, second in transition defense and third in field goal percentage allowed on layups and dunks, according to Second Spectrum tracking.”

The Lakers are 42-25. They are in fourth place in the Western Conference standings. 

Under first-year head coach JJ Redick, Los Angeles is 19th in the NBA in points per game, ninth in points per game allowed, 12th in offensive rating, 13th in defensive rating and 13th in net rating. 

“We can beat any team in the league when we keep them close to 100 points,” Lakers forward Dorian Finney-Smith said. “We’re going to get good looks playing with great guys: AR, Luka, especially when Bron comes back. All we got to do is play defense.”

Before the Finney-Smith trade with the Brooklyn Nets, the Lakers ranked 21st in the NBA in defensive efficiency.

Since DFS debuted for the Lakers on Dec. 31, the team has ranked fourth in defensive efficiency.