Magic Johnson no longer has a say in the moves that the Lakers make, as he decided to step down from his position as president of the organization in April. However, if he did have a say in the construction of the team's roster, he'd be willing to welcome Brooklyn Nets point guard D'Angelo Russell back to Los Angeles.
While serving as president with the Lakers, Johnson reportedly felt that Russell needed more time to develop. Now, though, Magic is singing a different tune:
“He’s better now,” Johnson told The Athletic on Monday night, tapping his right temple with an index finger as he stood in a parking lot outside the NBA Awards at the Santa Monica Airport. “He’s a different player. He’s more mature.
“Now he’s ready,” Johnson added. “He’s much more mature. I said the only thing, he was immature back then. He could always score, but the guys would never play with him because of what he did (with the Young video). But now all those guys are gone and he’s on another level now.”
The Lakers selected Russell with the No. 2 overall pick in the 2015 NBA Draft. He had several nice moments with the team, including a then season-high 40 point performance in a 125–120 loss to the Cleveland Cavaliers. However, Johnson and the Lakers ultimately decided to trade Russell to the Nets for Brook Lopez and the rights to Kyle Kuzma, the 27th pick in the 2017 NBA draft.
The move to Brooklyn has served Russell well. In fact, he managed to post the best statistical figures of his career with the team last season. In 81 regular season appearances, the former Ohio State Buckeye racked up averages of 21.1 points on 43.4 percent shooting from the field (36.9 percent from beyond the arc), 7.0 assists, 3.9 rebounds and 1.2 steals in 30.2 minutes per outing.
Follow Us
Subscribe