Lakers News: D’Angelo Russell Remains Faithful to LeBron James and Darvin Ham

Before the Los Angeles Lakers’ first-round series against the Denver Nuggets began, a lot of speculation swirled over D’Angelo Russell’s durability and whether head coach Darvin Ham would need to change his starting lineup with LeBron James and Anthony Davis, much like he did the previous year.

D'Angelo Russell Discusses What Went Into Bounce-Back Game 2 Performance  Against Nuggets | Yardbarker

Russell was essentially eliminated from the series in the 2023 Western Conference Finals, but he had just finished a far superior regular season in 2024.

Despite his tremendous struggle in Game 1, Russell’s playability in the series remained a concern. While he was a team-high plus-two in the game, he only managed 13 points on 6-for-20 shooting from the field. 

However, Ham remained with Russell for the second game, and the Lakers guard immediately made things right. Despite the loss, he finished 7 of 11 beyond the arc with 23 points and 6 assists in Game 2.

D'Angelo Russell Still Confident in Lakers Ability to Take Down Denver in  Series

Even after a dismal first game that compounded Russell’s problems from the previous postseason, James was eager to encourage Russell.

“We never stopped believing in him. It was wonderful to see that DLo being DLo tonight, James remarked following Game 2.

Ham was pleased with the way the seasoned guard approached the game and had no hesitation about starting Russell in the second game.

“He performed precisely as I had anticipated,” Ham remarked. “After a challenging shooting performance in Game 1, he returned to the drawing board, put in the necessary work, and produced a strong performance tonight.” Because of his amazing 3-point shooting performance, it’s difficult to come up short, but in playoff basketball, you have to set yourself apart by performing the same thing over and over.

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Russell has performed so admirably this season that he most definitely deserves a little leeway. Russell isn’t usually thought of as a top postseason player, but he has earned the opportunity to recover from a disappointing Game 1 after having perhaps his best regular season ever.

Regardless of how long that lasts, he did so and should be the likely starter at point guard for the remainder of the postseason.

D’Angelo Russell criticizes authorities

In another contentious incident during Game 2, D’Angelo Russell was struck in the face by Michael Porter Jr.; however, the referees overturned the foul decision upon replay review. Russell, who was especially irate, criticized officials in social media posts and during his post-game media appearance.