The Los Angeles Lakers are on the brink of elimination after the Denver Nuggets pulled off an impressive comeback win in Game 3. Their performance in Game 3 was quite a letdown. Despite racing on to a 10-point lead in the first quarter, LA just couldn’t deal with the Nuggets’ quality and size. In the end, the Nuggets clinched the game with a score of 112-105.

Lakers fans are particularly disappointed by D’Angelo Russell’s Game 3 performance. In 23 minutes of playing time, D-Lo recorded zero points, along with 2 assists and 3 rebounds. He shot 0/7 from the field, and 0/6 from downtown. Despite this, HC Darvin Ham stated he wouldn’t bench Russell; “He had some good looks that didn’t go down, just like Game 1. He bounced back in Game 2 and I expect him to bounce back in Game 4.”

However, as per Lakers Nation’s Trevor Lane, a good Game 4 performance from D-Lo may not bode well for LA’s long-term future. Trevor believes that the best scenario for the purple and gold will be if he opts in, at a $19 million expiring contract that they can use on the trade block. Further continuing, “So him (D’Angelo Russell) going on a heater, and maybe improving his value in free agency will be the best thing for D’Angelo Russell. May not actually be the best thing for the Lakers at this point.”

The Lakers signed a two-year contract extension worth $27 million earlier in 2023. But at the time, Russel had a player option worth $18.7 million for the next season (2024-25), making his future with the team already pretty uncertain. Of course, an already poor series is only adding fuel to fire right now.

D’Angelo Russell’s uncertainty with LA Lakers

The current season has been a roller coaster ride for D’Angelo Russell. After his subpar performance earlier in the season, trade rumors started to float around. Even when he was one of the key pieces to the Lakers’ puzzle, there were conversations going around on roping in Dejounte Murray from Atlanta. But the trade deadlines ended without this trade happening.

The team’s top brass might have gotten an influential push from his stellar performance since the beginning of this year. He’s averaging 20.4 points, 6.5 assists, and 3.2 rebounds in just 44 games. But there’ve been many frail elements going about, brutally exposed after the Lakers’ encounter with the Nuggets in the post-season. His average is now barely going ahead of 12 points and 3 rebounds against the Nuggets. His poor performance against Denver is only heightening his speculations about his future. But on many occasions he has stated that he wants to continue being a Laker, even after this season. But then, what if he gets a lucrative contract somewhere else?

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It’s a hard choice to make for Russel! What are your thoughts? Will D-Lo remain a Laker? Let us know in the comments!