The Los Angeles Lakers have been a stronger presence on the court with their newcomers. However, there has been a time when these players have choked but proven effective in the overall scenario. One such incident happened in the game against Minnesota Timberwolves, where Russell failed to give his usual performance.
D’Angelo Russell has been seen performing well for the team. He even managed to form a good relationship with the superstar duo when he first came to the team. But he has suffered various injuries, which has kept him out of action in a few games. The game on Tuesday was his return from injury, and he seemed to struggle. Keep reading to learn about Russell’s performance and Ham’s reaction to his game.
What Is Wrong With D’Angelo Russell?
The 27-year-old point guard is one of the players that the fans expect more as he came in place of Russell Westbrook. The shoes that he had to fill were one of the hardest, as Westbrook did not have it easy with the Lakers. But considering the pressure and responsibility, he managed to turn the tables quite well. His confidence before the first play-in game was running so high that he even called out Timberwolves in the open. An interview just before the game suggested that Russell would like revenge on his former team.
As much as he was oozing confidence, he did not even deliver half of the bit. It seemed like a switch flicked inside him, and all of a sudden, he started playing badly. The point guard finished the game with a disappointing 2 points in 24 games. His shooting was horrible, with 1-9 shots field and 0-4 from beyond the arc. However, it was not a complete waste playing him as he managed to help the team with eight assists and three rebounds. And this caused interviewers to pounce on coach Darvin Ham to answer the difficult question.
Darvin Ham Supports The Lakers Point Guard
Although it was not a good performance from the point guard, he did not have his coach going behind his back in the media. Ham has always been very supportive of his players despite facing various issues during his time with the Lakers. This attitude of his makes his player go all out for him, even in their bad times physically. Talking about D’Lo, he cleared his intention that he believes in the point guard. Darvin continued, “I have all the confidence in the world in D’Lo. We’re going to need him on this run that we plan to make.”
Russell is one of the crucial pieces in Ham’s plan to go as far as possible during this season. He compared his previous stats in the playoff season and said that he had done it before and he could do it again. And even explained that he would not be required to put extra effort into the offense giving him less workload during the games. Moreover, the offensive part of the Lakers is already so strong that they will not need much effort from D’Angelo to make a difference.
