In the Los Angeles Lakers‘ extended nightmare, they yet again lost to the Denver Nuggets two days ago. Even though the Lakers started strong, Denver picked up the defensive slack right after halftime. As a result, the Lakers gave up control sometime during the third quarter and never came close to regaining that. Their 114-103 loss comes through several elements on the court, LeBron James‘ passive offense in second-half, second-chance points, 3-point shot, and more. However, the most heated comments rise in light of D’Angelo Russell.

So, as fans and analysts echo the sentiment of witnessing a “better D’Angelo Russell” for a Lakers win, as sparked by Draymond Green who threw criticism at D’Lo missing his mark, Charles Barkley’s comments would repulse the same fans. Chuck, while talking about the Lakers’ performance on-air, mockingly said, “One thing you can always count on with the Lakers, they gon’ throw somebody under the bus when they lose.” 

Barkley then highlighted the Lakers’ recent history of the same notion, adding, “Going back to Russell Westbrook, going back to Frank Vogel, now I guess it’s D’Angelo Russell.” Frank Vogel was kicked out of the Purple and Gold behind the less-than-decent runs after enabling them of the 2020 championship. Westbrook’s chemistry issues with the squad saw him packing his bag within 2 seasons as well.

Nevertheless, Vogel’s Phoenix Suns hold a better season record than Lakers this campaign, while Brodie put up a dazzling triple-double in the Clippers’ game 1 win against the Mavs. Their ongoing success, like Chuck grazed, hints at the bigger problem within the franchise. However, in D’Lo’s case, especially against Denver, the fingers might be pointing in the right direction.

D’Angelo Russell has been fried against the Nuggets

D’Angelo Russell has rare offensive freedom on the Lakers. It compliments his tendency to streak, as he goes on a fiery run of sinking back-to-back big-time buckets. However, in Game 1, Russell shot an abysmal 1-9 from the three points and (6-20 from the field).

Sure, the Saturday night game marks just 1 off-shooting night by Russell. However, it is part of a pattern in D’Angelo Russell’s game against the Nuggets.

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Last year, Russell scored just 6.3 points per game in the Lakers sweep. He shot less than 32% from the field and a dismal 13.3% from three, hindering the squad’s comebacks at key points in the games. Even though Russell has elevated his performance against the Ball Arena team this season, it is still far from what the Lakers expect out of the 28-year-old.

Through the 2 season contests and a playoff game this season, Russell averages 13.3 points against the Nuggets; a huge decrease from his average of 18 points this season. Moreover, his efficiency does not see a significant change either, as he shot 16-45 (35.5%) throughout the 3 games.

For the Lakers, D’Angelo Russell’s stints add to a prominent factor behind their consistent losses to Denver. Even in the close games, LA has suffered the consequences of their offensive rebounding and 3-point shooting struggles. And the idea is, with Russell’s 45.6% field goal and 41.5% three-point shooting, they can put one of those concerns to rest right away.