The Los Angeles Lakers’ probable trade chip in the second part of the 2023–24 season has evolved into D’Angelo Russell, their possible saviour.
Because of the two-year contract he signed in the offseason, Russell was the most probable candidate to be thrown into a deal coming into the regular season. Despite receiving criticism for his subpar play against the Denver Nuggets in the Western Conference Finals, the guard chose to return to Los Angeles when his free agency market dried up.
The storyline surrounding the former No. 2 overall choice has shifted in the last few months as he has become more than just an arc player and is enjoying his best period of play to date. It’s been fantastic to watch Russell lead the Lakers to multiple excellent victories and play with a renewed sense of confidence.
Russell and head coach Darvin Ham haven’t gotten along for the past 15 months, as the point guard has made clear in some recent remarks. Because of this, Ham was questioned before Wednesday’s game against the Sacramento Kings, but according to Ham, the two are now very close. This is according to Jovan Buha of The Athletic:
“We have fascinating discussions. Fantastic text chats during and after games, as well as in-game. It’s difficult. This is the rationale for the term “building a relationship.” It never always gets off to a flawless start. attempting to make decisions on the spot. And certainly, Dennis is someone I love and care about. Dennis is an incredible musician. But simply attempting to pick up Lo quickly and work things out.
Then, for him, the lovely part about it—I believe the reason for the difference between then and today is our mutual capacity to communicate openly and honestly with one another. and our capacity to genuinely accept responsibility for one another. It’s two mature males who are interested in winning. both attempting to assist the other in solving this puzzle. and who both aspire to reach the potential we know they possess. However, I believe that as far as he and I are concerned, we’re doing fantastic. I’m confident he would concur.
Although NBA players and coaches don’t always agree on everything, Russell and Ham have been able to resolve conflicts through continuous communication. The team has benefited overall from the two being able to work together, and hopefully, this trend will continue.