Amid an up-and-down season, NBA point guard D’Angelo Russell thought he had cemented his long-term future with the Lakers before being exposed by the Denver Nuggets. Since facing off against Denver in the Conference Finals, Russell has been constantly targeted on defense, and he’s had trouble keeping up. By the end of Game 2, fans were calling on head coach Darvin Ham to bench Russell in favor of Dennis Schroder, Rui Hachimura, and Austin Reaves instead.
Needless to say, the Lakers lost Game 3 as well, and now it has apparently forced Ham into making the long-anticipated change in the lineup. Sadly for the Lakers, however, it may already be too late.
No more DLO! pic.twitter.com/QzHIA7aJKc
— Daily Grind Fantasy Sports (@DGFantasy) May 22, 2023
HAM FINALLY WANTS HIS JOB BUT ITS TOO LATE!
— KingCharge (@KingCharge) May 22, 2023
https://twitter.com/TheSASBurner/status/1660797375785603073
We will see how this lineup works out for them, but it’s clear that the Lakers have no intention of rolling over for this game. Despite being down 3-0, they will keep fighting for as long as they can.
Good decision, I agree. First win will be tonight.
— Iñaki Porto (@InakiPorto) May 23, 2023
The lineup that I would put 1-5 would be like this. Reaves,Rui,James,Vando,AD I would put Vandy on Murray and James on MPJ. Rui on Gordon. 2-3 Zone and close out hard on shooters especially the corners. They should just force shots from jokic from 3 and Tire out murray.
— zZGrimz🇵🇷🏴🇯🇵 (@Not_zZGrimz) May 23, 2023
Overall, Russell has been positive for the Lakers, and his shot-making was a huge boost for the team as they began their late-season run. Sadly, Russell hasn’t been shooting well at all lately, and it’s made him virtually unplayable against the Nuggets in this series.
And now that Russell is officially off the starting lineup, one has to wonder about how it might impact his standing with the Lakers when free agency starts in July.
Will The Lakers Move On From D’Lo?
It remains to be seen how Rob Pelinka will approach this free agency, but you have to be pretty happy with how things turned out this season. It’s because of guys like Russell, Vanderbilt, and Hachimura that they were able to move up to 7th.
Still, changes will be made if this team falls short, and replacing D’Angelo could be the best way to improve.
“There’s a strong argument to be made that Russell should have lost his starting job early on in this series,” Sam Amick wrote for The Athletic. “Add in the fact that Russell has been unable to provide the scoring punch that made him such a good fit in these past few months, and it’s been the kind of unmitigated disaster that will likely make free-agency discussions with the Lakers far more complicated than most had expected just a few weeks ago.”
After weeks of rumors and days of being played off the floor, this latest benching by Ham could be the final nail in the coffin for D’Lo’s future with the Lakers. Or it may be the turning point that defines his career…
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