The Los Angeles Lakers trail the Western Conference Finals three games to none against the Denver Nuggets, and a significant reason why has been the poor play of guard D’Angelo Russell.
After shooting very well in the regular season and putting forth some strong performances in the first two rounds of the playoffs, he’s shooting just 29.6 percent overall and 14.3 percent from 3-point range in this series.
Some have wondered if the Lakers may bench him as a result of his inability to hit shots versus Denver. In Game 4, that is exactly what head coach Darvin Ham will do.
In Russell’s place, Dennis Schroder will start, and so will Rui Hachimura, who will replace Jarred Vanderbilt.
Starters for Game 4:
Schröder, Reaves, LeBron, Hachimura and Davis
That’s been L.A.‘s best group this series.
— Mike Trudell (@LakersReporter) May 23, 2023
Last week, a report surfaced that the Lakers were concerned they may “lose” Russell if they ended up benching him. It appears the team has prioritized extending this series over the feelings of Russell, who will be a free agent this summer.
