Grading the Los Angeles Lakers up through the 2023 NBA All-Star break is a bit tricky, considering how different the roster looks after the Feb. 9 trade deadline (much to LeBron James' approval).

Russell Westbrook, Patrick Beverley, Kendrick Nunn, Thomas Bryant, Damian Jones, and Juan Toscano-Anderson are elsewhere, while D'Angelo Russell, Jarred Vanderbilt, Malik Beasley, Mo Bamba, Rui Hachimura, and Davon Reed have played a handful of games in purple-and-gold, and only one with both LeBron and Anthony Davis.

The early results of the revamped roster have been promising. But, it's still too early to truly evaluate the new additions. Instead, let's hand out “first-half” grades for the folks who have been on the journey since Day 1 (including Darvin Ham and Rob Pelinka), as the Lakers — 27-32, 2.5 games out of the play-in — prep for the home stretch.

Lakers pre-All-Star break report card

LeBron James

The 38-year-old remains one of the best players in the sport.

Though he doesn't quite impact winning on both ends like he once did, his offensive production, play-making, and transition dominance are staggering in Year 20. Despite cold three-point shooting (31%), James is averaging eye-popping numbers: 30 points, 8.4 rebounds, 7 assists, 50.8% from the field.

Unfortunately, he's missed 14 games, and his foot/ankle injury will linger until the offseason. Plus, as impressively as LeBron sets an example with his daily work ethic and inherently makes his teammates better on the court, it's fair to question whether his public inkling for Kyrie Irving negatively impacted the Lakers' locker room, which became a tense environment before the trade deadline.

Grade: A-

Anthony Davis

For the Lakers to earn a play-in spot, AD needs to resemble the MVP-caliber player he was for about 15 games in November. Since then, he's missed 23 games, looked OK for his first few games back, then spiraled into one of the strangest weeks ever, as he sulked through LeBron's record-setting night amid a four-game stretch in which he shot 41% and looked bizarrely disinterested.

Encouragingly, AD showed competitive fire on defense at the end of the Feb. 11 win over the Golden State Warriors, then found a groove (28/10/5) in the final outing before the break — a joyous collective win over the New Orleans Pelicans.

Ideally, LeBron and AD will jell with their new teammates and the increased depth will lighten the load on the veteran stars.

Grade: B

Dennis Schroder

Schroder has been a bright spot. A favorite of Ham's (they share a years-long close relationship), Dennis won the starting point guard job out of camp and only relinquished it due to the arrival of DLo.

Following a humbling 2021-22 season and without the weight of expectations he carried into his previous stint with the Lakers, Dennis has been a MENANCE on D and a responsible floor general on O. His 1.9 turnovers per 36 minutes are the lowest mark of his career, and he's critically picked up his scoring on short-handed nights.

He should thrive as the point man of the second unit.

Grade: A-

Austin Reaves

Reaves might be the most reliable player on the Lakers outside of LeBron. He's upped his scoring to 10.5 PPG as a sophomore, flirted with 50/40/90 splits, and consistently improves lineups with his two-way decision-making and IQ. He's among the league leaders in charges drawn despite missing 18 games.

If there's one critique of his game? He doesn't shoot enough. Reaves should be a crunch time fixture.

Grade: B

Troy Brown Jr.

Brown Jr. has been everything the Lakers hoped for when they signed him to a minimum contract. He embraces defense, intangibles, rebounding, cutting, and the gray areas of the game that need to be addressed by role players.

He's shooting 37% on corner triples and 36% on catch-and-shoot looks. A steady option in any lineup.

Grade: B+

Lonnie Walker IV

Walker IV is still the Lakers' third-leading scorer (13.2 PPG) excluding Russ and DLo, but he's fallen out of the rotation post-deadline. His defense has cratered.

He's a useful microwave and athlete to call upon, but he could be the odd man out with Beasley in tow.

Grade: C+

Wenyen Gabriel

Gabriel, too, has seen his opportunities cut since the trades — drawing the ire of Lakers fans. However, Bamba struggled in his Lakers debut and could be re-supplanted by Gabriel.

Wenyen's defensive versatility and relentless motor are valuable. His three-point shooting is respectable. But, he has to eliminate sloppy mistakes and foul way less frequently.

When AD rests, the Lakers should deploy Wenyen and Vanderbilt lineups as much as possible. I'm exhausted just thinking about hanging with that energetic frontcount combo.

Grade: B-

Max Christie

Christie has exceeded rookie-year expectations. As a 19-year-old second-round pick coming off a shaky freshman season at Michigan State and an unremarkable Summer League showing, the Lakers were not expecting Christie to play a real role on a win-now roster.

And yet, Christie quickly bulked up over the summer, and his shooting, athleticism — especially lateral agility and rebounding chops — and feel swiftly earned Ham's trust. He's made 41.9% of his treys, validating the Lakers' vision for him as a 3-and-D.

Another win for the organization's vaunted scouting department.

Grade: A-

(Fellow rookies Scotty Pippen Jr. and Cole Swider haven't logged enough minutes to warrant a grade.)

Darvin Ham

Give Ham credit: He moved Westbrook to the bench by Game 3 and never relented. He's remained steadfastly positive through the ups and downs and his club plays hard every night.

On the downside, Ham stuck with Westbrook too often in crunch time, costing the Lakers a handful of wins (he was managing Russ' ego, but Ham repeatedly insisted he doesn't take feelings into account). His insistence on two-small-guard lineups (Schroder+Pat Bev usually) was confounding. In general, his rotations can be head-scratching and, worse, inconsistent.

The Lakers should be pleased with their hire. But, can he lead them to the postseason? Los Angeles likely needs to win at least 15 of their last 23 games to qualify for the play-in. If they make the first round, Ham's tactical chops and late-game management will be under newfound scrutiny.

Grade: B

Rob Pelinka

Pelinka patiently waited for the trade market to materialize before striking a handful of smart deals. He used a redundant piece (Nunn) to fill a void (a large, versatile forward). He got the picks from the Rui trade back in the Bryant exchange. He landed a stretch-5 (Bamba), a Swiss-Army-Knife forward (Vanderbilt), a sniper (Beasley), and a borderline star (Russell) without parting with both first-round picks, and got rid of two locker room annoyances.

Everybody Pelinka acquired is under 26, and his “pre-agency” approach to the deadline gives the Lakers a ton of flexibility this summer. They can retain their new pieces on tradable contracts, or move on and clear room to chase Irving.

Grade: A-