D’Angelo Russell put on a show during his second stint in the NBA Summer League for the Los Angeles Lakers back in July. The 20-year-old guard was highly motivated to show what he had worked on during the offseason and did just that with an impressive showing in Las Vegas.
With Lakers training camp only a few days away, Mike Bresnahan of Spectrum SportsNet spoke with rookie forward Brandon Ingram at the team’s practice facility about a number of different things, including Russell and whether his teammate is poised for a breakout season.
“I think he will,” Ingram said of Russell. “He’s a very good player, a very good point guard, and he can score the ball at will, so I think he’s going to have a very good season this year.”
Along with Russell’s determination to prove his worth during his second season with the Lakers, new head coach Luke Walton has had nothing but high praise for his point guard since being hired by the team. Walton has a lot of confidence in Russell and appears prepared to make the former Ohio State his leader on the floor.
With Kobe Bryant now retired, the pressure falls to Russell in terms of leading the franchise forward. Although expectations remain low for this young team, D’Angelo will have to show signs of promise in his second season or prepare for some backlash from fans desperately hoping for this franchise can turn things around sooner rather than later.
Training camp for the Lakers will get underway next week with the team traveling to Santa Barbara from Sept. 27 to Oct. 2. Russell and company will play their first preseason on Oct. 4 at the Honda Center in Anaheim against the division rival Sacramento Kings.