The LA Lakers let their recent high standards slip in their defeat on the road at the Brooklyn Nets.
While it must be noted they were missing three of their preferred starting five, the LA Lakers hoped they had enough to come out of Brooklyn with a win. Instead they left with a 111-108 loss.
If there was one consolation to avoid a total nightmare for the Lakers, it is that former player D’Angelo Russell did not sink them with a late winner.
Russell was traded by the Lakers in late December in a move that saw LA acquire Dorian Finney-Smith, who missed the game at the Nets through injury.
D’Angelo Russell spoke after the Nets win over the Lakers, picking out one former teammate for praise.
Russell told Hoops Hype that he expects close pal Austin Reaves to thrive on the Lakers, who have a totally new look following the Luka Doncic trade.
Reaves is yet to settle in the new system, after suffering an injury that caused him to miss time, and upon his return, LeBron James went down with injury.
The Reaves and Doncic axis did not work so well against the Nets, but chemistry takes time to build.
Russell believes that while Doncic and James are the best of the best, Reaves will continue to prove his worth.
He said: “His role has changed a little bit. He’s such a killer, and he’s so underrated.
“I don’t think that LeBron or Luka can hinder his success or knock him off of how good he is.
“Kudos to him. I’m cheering for him.”
Austin Reaves was close to a triple-double with a 17-8-10 performance, but he was not happy with his impact.
Speaking after the game he said, “I played incredibly bad,” saying he must step up even more of a leader with LeBron James out.
17 points may be enough when LeBron James and Luka Doncic are in the line-up. Reaves is capable of more, he has proven it, hitting 45 points against the Pacers in early February, pre-injury.
In three games in March, Reaves is averaging 13.7 ppg, below his season average of 18.8.
However the rest of the season pans out for Reaves, he will have Russell cheering him on.
