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Los Angeles Lakers head coach Luke Walton was not satisfied with his starting point guard's performance on Sunday when they lost to the Chicago Bulls.
D'Angelo Russell made his return after a one game absence due to a sore left knee but played subpar basketball after only making 3-11 shots, finishing with eight points, three rebounds, and seven assists. Walton discussed what he wants to see from the 20-year-old Ohio State product in the future and also talked about what he observed from him during the game.
“We want him to push and be aggressive. You can’t play at this level by favoring it. If that’s the case where it hurts, then we need to shut him down until he’s healthy. The league is too good only to go halfway and show some of the stuff that you can do because you’re concerned that something might hurt.”
“I thought he was favoring it a little bit. I don’t know if he was hurt or it was in his head. But it felt like he was floating around the perimeter more than normal.”
The 36-year-old bench boss certainly knows what he's talking about as he was a former player himself with two NBA championships from his nine-year career. After seeing Russell struggle and still manifesting the effects of his injury, he is looking to rest him until he gets back to 100 percent.
Lou Williams is expected to see an uptick in his minutes in Russell's place with Jordan Clarkson possibly seeing some playing time at the point guard position as well.
