If there’s one thing the media and fans have learned about D’Angelo Russell during the 2023–24 season, it’s that the Los Angeles Lakers guard is brutally honest. Russell doesn’t pull punches and responds candidly to even the toughest questions, which proved true once again when discussing his time in Los Angeles in a recent interview.
Specifically, Russell opened up about being benched during the 2023 NBA Western Conference finals. The 28-year-old guard bluntly admitted that his former teammate, Dennis Schröder’s strong relationship with Darvin Ham, left him unable to build his own dynamic with the Lakers head coach.
“[Schröder’s] relationship with Darvin is the reason I couldn’t have a relationship with Darvin,” Russell told ESPN’s Dave McMenamin.
