Los Angeles Lakers point guard D'Angelo Russell is the personification of polarizing. There are droves of fans who want to see him traded, as well as some in the front office, but his on-court peaks and work behind the scenes have earned him a significant supporter.
Russell is struggling early in 2024-25 from an individual perspective, but head coach JJ Redick is shining a light on the way he's responded to adversity.
Through six games, Russell is averaging 12.2 points and 5.8 assists on .403/.294/1.000 shooting. That's inevitably stoked the flames of the persistent trade rumors that have followed him throughout his second Lakers tenure.
Rather than allowing the adversity to overwhelm him, however, Russell is utilizing his past experience in a challenging position to help one of his younger teammates.
According to Dan Woike of The Los Angeles Times, Russell has embraced his role as a leader in the locker room by guiding Max Christie through his own difficult start to the 2024-25 season
“I just find ways to make the game easier for our younger guys, try to simplify it, help them think less, help them be in a position where they can be the best in,” Russel said. “For me, I know Max is a confidence guy, so trying to instill confidence in him and keep him there no matter how the storm goes and adversity. Just keep that confidence high, you’ll be all right.”
Russell has struggled himself from a statistical perspective, but his leadership could prove essential to one of the Lakers' most important reserves righting the ship.
D'Angelo Russell taking on a leadership role with Max Christie
Christie re-signed with the Lakers on a four-year, $32 million contract during the 2024 offseason. It was a powerful statement by general manager Rob Pelinka that previous head coach Darvin Ham had underutilized Christie in 2022-23 and 2023-24.
Unfortunately, Christie has shot just 31.6 percent from the field and 25.0 percent from beyond the arc during the Lakers' first six games of the 2024-25 regular season.
Rather than being alienated by his teammates for his inefficient shooting, Christie is being taken under Russell's wing. That was on full display during the recent 131-125 win over the Toronto Raptors, as both Christie and Russell had their best performances of the season thus far.
Russell finished the Raptors game with 19 points and six assists on 7-of-13 shooting from the field, while Christie tallied seven points, five rebounds, and two offensive boards in just 13 minutes.
Perhaps the win in Toronto will be the launching pad for both players to return to the level the Lakers know they're capable of playing at. There's certainly reason for optimism in that regard, as Christie has been working hard on defense regardless of how he's shot the ball, while Russell has been active in setting his teammates up and maintaining ideal spacing.
Even if the win over the Raptors wasn't the beginning of a turnaround, however, there's something to be said about Russell drowning out the noise and doing what's best for the team.
After years of trade rumors and criticism from the fans, Russell could've mentally checked out. Instead, he's earned nothing but praise from Redick for how he's handled the personal misfortune of the early stages of the 2024-25 regular season.
Per Woike, Redick believes Russell is setting a strong example for the other veterans in terms of how they can still impact the team in a positive manner when their shots aren't falling.
“It’s one of the challenges that I gave him the first day he came to the gym, and he was using his voice. He was energetic and we talked about it afterwards. And I said, that’s what I want, that’s gotta be your standard."
Redick continued:
“And I think for all our guys, it’s a great example. … It’s something that we’ve talked about with a number of our older players. It’s you gotta be a leader with these young guys and help pick them up. Give, give them some confidence and it’s great to hear DLo did that.”
Russell will need to find his form on offense, but the fact that he's helping the younger players work through their own shooting woes is a sign of how much value he brings behind the scenes.