The Los Angeles Lakers are reportedly not looking to trade D’Angelo Russell in the wake of all the drama involving him and Nick Young.
According to Kevin Ding of Bleacher Report, the Lakers are “not happy” that Russell’s poor decision led to a major distraction for the team. They are also concerned that the 20-year-old has lost the trust of other players, which could make it difficult to lure free agents this summer. However, Ding does not expect the Lakers to ship the point guard out of town.
“But the club is not about to give up on him over this: a foolish, ill-conceived undertaking that was at least not malicious in intent,” Ding wrote Wednesday. “The Lakers believe in Russell’s talent and hope he learns a lesson the hard way about needing to be more professional.”
Lakers head coach Byron Scott has been tough on Russell all season long, often calling him out for a lack of maturity. Between that public criticism and the saga involving Young, Russell’s stock is pretty low. There’s no way the Lakers could get equal value in return right now for a player they used the No. 2 overall pick in the draft on.
Russell has apologized to Young, though a tweet Swaggy P later deleted made it seem like he is not ready to accept. With Russell’s teammates reportedly isolating him in the locker room, it’s unclear how much permanent damage has been done. Should the Lakers keep Russell this offseason, they may need a major roster overhaul in part because of his poor decision.
