D’Angelo Russell started his career in NBA with the Lakers back in 2015. But in 2017, he was traded to the Brooklyn Nets. Russell was selected in the second team of NBA All-Rookie in 2016 as a point guard. Later in 2019, he got his first selection for the NBA All-Star team. Since then, D’lo has come a long way. From the Nets, he moved to the Warriors for a year. But his longest time with a franchise at a stretch came with the Minnesota Timberwolves. In 2020 he was traded to the Timberwolves, and he stayed there till 2023.
However, after his return to the Lakers, things have gone quite at heights that anybody expected. For now, Russell is the most important part of the squad who can make or break the game with his presence. And looks like the Lakers front office is also watching out the rising Lakers’ star.
Lakers Don’t Want To Let D’Angelo Russell Go
Currently, D’Angelo Russell and Anthony Davis are both coming out of injuries back on the court. And clearly, both the players have been instrumental in the gradual rise of the Lakers on the table. After coming back from injury, Russell scored an impressive 28 points, followed that by 33 points. All these performances have resulted in the Front office of the Lakers discussing extending Russell’s contract. According to Jovan Buha of The Athletic, the feeling is mutual between the franchise and the player. The contract of D’Angelo Russell ends after this season. The Lakers look at him as a possible star point guard in the future.
Furthermore, Russell himself has evolved as a skilled scorer after all these years. Lakers’ ace, LeBron James is 38 now. Hence, when he will leave, the squad would want D’Angelo Russell to take charge in the lineup. It is still very doubtful if the Lakers journey will end after the regular season or will extend to the postseason. But whatever happens the Lakers have a strong interest to re-sign D’Angelo Russell, as what Jovan Buha told Michael Scotto of HoopsHype. The Lakers are currently the 10th seed with only 12 games to go in the regular season.
New Lakers Lineup Doing Better Than Expected
In early 2023, the 27-year-old point guard returned to the franchise, where his journey began. It was a vital trade move for the Lakers. The Lakers were not happy with Westbrook and wanted a better deal. So very close to the end of the February trade deadline, a three-team contract brought back D’Angelo Russell to the Lakers. The Lakers got Russell from the Timberwolves, and the other Russell (Westbrook) went to the other team in the contract, Utah Jazz. However, D’Angelo Russell’s return saw a change in the balance of the roster.
Albeit, it was not just Russell, but a few more players like Malik Beasley, Jarred Vanderbilt, and Mo Bamba who made a lot of difference in the team. Rui Hachimura came in a little earlier than these players. Players like Dennis Schroder, Wenyen Gabriel, and Austin Reaves have made a lot of impact on the team in the current season as well. But at present, the two leading players the franchise is looking up to are Anthony Davis and D’lo Russell. Due to injury, the Lakers are missing their big star, LeBron James. D’Angelo Russell is on his way to be the sole holder of the 88th position of the three-pointers list of all time.
