Los Angeles Lakers starting guard D’Angelo Russell has always had to deal with the narrative that he simply isn’t the same player in the playoffs as he is during the regular season.
He played very well during the second half of this regular season while shooting a very high percentage from 3-point range. But in Game 1 of the first round of this year’s playoffs versus the Denver Nuggets, he went 6-of-20 from the field and 1-of-9 from downtown in a 114-103 loss.
On Thursday in Game 3, he played about as poorly as a player can perform offensively. He missed all seven of his shot attempts and went scoreless, which led to him getting booed by the home crowd at Crypto.com Arena.
But Russell bounced back in a big way in Game 4 on Saturday. With his team facing elimination, he scored an efficient 21 points, including 14 in the second half, as L.A. won 119-108.
The guard said he hasn’t lost belief in himself, even after numerous poor playoff performances over the years.
“I believe in myself, it’s as simple as that. More than anybody.” – D’Angelo Russell on scoring 21 points in Saturday’s Game 4 win after going scoreless in Thursday’s Game 3 loss
— Dave McMenamin (@mcten) April 28, 2024
After Russell put up a bagel in Game 3, there was talk that perhaps head coach Darvin Ham would bench him for Game 4. After all, in last year’s Western Conference finals when the Lakers were swept by Denver, he was benched for Game 4 after playing extremely poorly in the first three games.
But Ham stuck with him, and the coach even said he deserved a chance at redemption.
Ham may not be a decent NBA-level head coach, but his decision to keep Russell in the starting lineup and give the guard a public vote of confidence worked — at least for now.
