After a bit of a shaky start that even saw him moved to a reserve role at one point, this season has turned into one of the best in the career of D’Angelo Russell. He is shooting a career-high from 3-point range and has become one of the most crucial pieces to the success of the Los Angeles Lakers.
But one thing that many have spoken about with Russell is his growth as a vocal leader. The point guard has not been shy in voicing his opinions to head coach Darvin Ham and superstars LeBron James and Anthony Davis about what he believes should be done in order to help the Lakers be successful and this is something that he witnessed during his time with the Golden State Warriors.
Russell recently reflected on this, noting how witnessing Draymond Green call out the Warriors during film sessions and seeing how it helped them grow shaped what he does now with the Lakers, via Dave McMenamin of ESPN:
“When I got around Draymond, I seen him in the film room, like really talking and really creating controversy. Really challenging [teammates] and really doing that on purpose,” Russell said. “And I saw how we grew. We weren’t even a good team, but we grew because of that dialogue in the film room.
“Then I get here and nobody talks but Bron. I was like, ‘What the f—?’ And then I just started being vocal, and that became where my IQ is exposed now.”
Teams cannot grow if they aren’t willing to look at themselves in the mirror, accept their faults and work to fix them. It is one thing for coaches to call it out, but it’s different when teammates do so and Russell doing that ultimately helps the Lakers in the long run.
Green is one of the biggest talkers in the NBA, but the Warriors need that from him and that attitude improves the team. Russell will never be an agitator like Green in that sense, but his willingness to speak up goes a long way in helping the Lakers continue to improve and ultimately be the team they want to be.
Lakers’ LeBron James credits D’Angelo Russell for not breaking during trade rumors
What has been so impressive about D’Angelo Russell is how he performed in the midst of constant trade rumors and the belief that the Lakers would deal him away by the trade deadline. It is something that undoubtedly stood out to LeBron James, who praised him for it.
LeBron noted that it takes a strong individual to maintain focus throughout all of that and credited Russell for never wavering. James also added that the Lakers never lost faith in Russell, even when he was struggling earlier in the year.
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