D’Angelo Russell admits Lakers’ development stalled because of Kobe Bryant farewell

If D’Angelo Russell is to be believed, the 2015-16 Los Angeles Lakers season went about as poorly as it possibly could have for the team’s young guns.

Russell told Tania Ganguli of the Los Angeles Times that he never felt that he got the coaching he needed from former coach Byron Scott and his staff, and he also admitted that Kobe Bryant’s season-long farewell stalled the franchise.

“He deserved it; it was his time,” Russell said of Bryant. “They expected so much from so many people, and then Kobe had his farewell tour, and it was just like, we put everything we had, expectations for everybody else, on hold. We gotta get through Kobe’s farewell tour and then we can continue with our process. So we kind of accepted that.”

Russell was critical of the coaching staff, and while he didn’t name names, he did say that the old regime did not give him the help he needed.

“Everything I went through was new, and there was no guidance from the people that were supposed to give me the guidance,” Russell said.

Russell said there is a tangible difference now with Luke Walton and his new staff.

“I feel like if I came into the league this year, in this environment, it wouldn’t have been as tough,” Russell said. “Even if Kobe was here, it still wouldn’t have been as tough. The coaching staff, the whole atmosphere that this coaching staff brings is different. I’m not saying better, I’m not downgrading the last coaching staff. I’m just saying the atmosphere they bring every day is a winning mentality.”

There was plenty of talk during the season that Russell and Scott never saw eye-to-eye, and it sounds like there’s a fair bit of truth to that at least on Russell’s side. Russell also admitted that playing with the now-retired Bryant was no walk in the park. Scott and Bryant are both out of the picture now, and with Walton firmly behind him, he can really kickstart his NBA career.