Los Angeles Lakers Get Instant Boost From D’Angelo Russell’s Return
The Los Angeles Lakers received a big boost from D’Angelo Russell Tuesday night, as he returned from a three-game absence.
The Los Angeles Lakers have fallen on tough times the last two months. After beginning the season 10-10, Lakers victories have been few and far between. They went into Tuesday’s matchup with the Denver Nuggets 16-34 and reeling.
The Lakers had lost three games in a row, which should come as no surprise as D’Angelo Russell was sidelined. Russell had an injured calf that forced him out of the lineup. Losses with Russell out of the lineup are nothing new for the Lakers this season.
Russell played in 34 games prior to Tuesday. The Lakers were 13-21 in games Russell plays; a decent record, given they are 3-13 without him in the lineup. The Lakers got right back on track against the Nuggets as Russell’s return gave the team an instant boost.
In the previous three games without Russell, the Lakers averaged only 86.3 points per game and they lost by an average of 21.3 points per game; a franchise-worst 49 point loss to the Dallas Mavericks had a lot to do with that.
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With Russell back in the lineup the Lakers offense clicked once again. The Lakers got back in the win column Tuesday against the Nuggets, defeating Denver 120-116. Not surprisingly, Russell played a huge part in the offensive explosion and victory.
Russell ran the Lakers offense masterfully and didn’t look like a player who hadn’t played a full game in about two weeks. He played a team-high 34 minutes and he stuffed the stat sheet.
Russell scored 22 points on 7-of-17 from the field, going 2-of-7 from deep and 6-of-8 from the foul line.
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He constantly got his teammates involved, dishing out a career-high 10 assists. He really had things rolling with rookie backup center, Ivica Zubac.
Zubac scored a career-high 17 points in 21 minutes off the bench and his cohesion with Russell was a big reason for the Lakers pulling off the victory.
Russell and Zubac ran the pick-and-roll to perfection in the fourth quarter. It is the simplest play in the NBA, but the most difficult to defend when it is run correctly; Russell and Zubac ran it correctly in the fourth quarter.
Zubac scored eight points in the fourth quarter to go with five rebounds and one assist. With Russell finding success in the pick-and-roll with Zubac, the Lakers offense opened up in the final quarter. It enabled them to keep pace in a frenetic fourth quarter in which the Nuggets won 40-39.
Russell scored eight points with three assists and two rebounds in the fourth quarter to help the Lakers hold onto their lead. The rebounds were a nice bonus from Russell Tuesday night, as he pulled down seven total in the game.
Russell was active defensively with one steal and one block and had excellent ball security; he turned the ball over only once and finished the game with a plus-11 plus/minus ratio.
It was a triumphant return for the Lakers’ 20-year-old. They are hoping that he can keep it rolling as this young Lakers squad looks to continue growing and gaining confidence.
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Russell brings a certain swagger and confidence with him to the court that his teammates feed off of as well. While a 14-21 record with Russell isn’t great, it is a significant improvement after the Lakers won only 17 games all of last season.