From going 0 for 7 in the huge Game 3 loss to the Denver Nuggets, to casually scrolling his mobile phone during a timeout, things have not been fine when it comes to D’Angelo Russell. The lefty guard has been labeled as one of Los Angeles Lakers‘ most dicey pieces in the first-round series. Apart from his dismal scoring against Denver, his inability to engage with the Lakers during crucial stretches is an even more concerning sight. As Stephen A Smith questioned D’Lo‘s authenticity of donning a purple and gold jersey, Kendrick Perkins defended the guard.

In one of his expressive glimpses, Smith questioned Russell’s mettle, blaming him for a low-producing first half of the season and struggles against Denver. With that, Perkins claimed that low moments are part of being a role player in the league. Speaking from his championship experience, Perk goes back to his Celtics days, citing “Big Baby crying on the end of the bench and then witness Reggie Jackson breakdown on the bench”. 

However, Perk then claims that the Lakers have kept D’Angelo Russell on an island for the majority of the season, saying, “The Lakers distanced themselves from him all season long. And the one time he distances himself away from the Lakers, it’s a problem?”. As Perk defends D’Lo, fans would cheeringly back up the former champion’s statements. However, sitting outside from a team huddle is not a common sight, even when having reasons for discomfort with the squad.

With that, Jay Williams, despite usually siding with the players during heated debates, couldn’t find a case for D’Lo. He said, “For D’Angelo Russell to check out of a game that way and not be involved in a team huddle gives me major concern.”

D’Angelo Russell has had quite an eventful and tiring season

Just like Stephen A, many analysts believe that D’Angelo Russell has technically “checked out” of what the LA team is aiming for this season. However, with the Lakers’ overall struggles, there has been a notion that D’Angelo Russell has been targeted specifically by the franchise to throw their blame on.

Russell went to the off-season with a question mark on his next NBA tenure. Luckily, the Lakers decided to re-sign its key pieces from the previous season run. Despite that, D’Lo saw no strict position on the rotation this year. He was actively part of Darvin Ham’s season-long experiments, all while rumors of being shunned by the team in the background kept surfacing.

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As the Lakers struggled through the majority of the season, D’Angelo Russell fought alongside the squad. However, he also had to fight another battle, one that could jeopardize his role in the Lakers. Despite his pivotal role in the playoffs, D’Lo was daily linked towards trade talks near the mid-season deadline.

While D’Angelo managed to propel against those rumors, will he be able to do the same against the fresh narratives from the Lakers’ recent playoff losses?