Photo credit: Marca.com
Lakers Star Hints at Leaving L.A With Cryptic Post
After reaching the conference finals last season, the Lakers look far from repeating this year. Currently sitting 11th in the standings and out of the play-in tournament, the Lakers have been heavily talked about in terms of trades to bolster their roster.
With seemingly every player other than James and Davis involved in at least one trade rumor this season, many fans think they have finally figured out who will be the first player to leave.Lakers Star to Leave
Fan speculation suggests that D'Angelo Russell is set to leave the Lakers for the second time in his career. In a recent tweet, the 27-year-old posted a picture of himself and his son in the Crypto.com Arena tunnels. While no words were said, the picture itself is what fans have been focusing on. With both of their backs to the camera, it appears as if they are walking out of the arena, and it looks like it could be a subtle farewell from the star.
🤌🏾 pic.twitter.com/3p4S49NWCf— D'Angelo Russell (@Dloading) January 13, 2024
Lakers Struggles
Although they have experienced good runs of form sporadically, overall the Lakers have been far from expectations. They did win the inaugural NBA in-season tournament; however, a month later, they find themselves with a 19-20 record and far from where they aim to be.
This is the main reason for so much trade speculation surrounding the purple and gold. With numerous other teams such as the Clippers and Suns, as well as the drastically improved Thunder and Timberwolves, the Western Conference is harder than ever. The Lakers are in desperate need of some changes if they hope to keep their season alive.
Russell On the Lakers
Russell was drafted with the 2nd overall pick by the Lakers in 2015 but was unfortunately traded away after just 2 seasons. Since then, he spent 5 seasons away from Los Angeles playing for the Nets, Warriors, and Timberwolves before rejoining the Lakers towards the end of last season.
His second stint with the Lakers has been much more memorable, where at a lot of times, he was used as the 3rd scoring option behind Davis and James. His value has increased exponentially, yet he still finds himself on the trading block due to the lack of valuable assets the Lakers own.
In fact, of all the Lakers' roster, himself, Hachimura, and Reaves have been the most talked-about trade targets in deals surrounding players such as Derozan, Lavine, and Dejonte Murray. Despite the ongoing noise, Russell has managed to maintain his composure, averaging 14.7 points and 6.1 assists per game this year. When asked about how he handles all of the distractions, he said this;
«It's playing basketball at the end of the day. That's what it is. So, new role, new timing, all of that. Once I get out there, it's just basketball.»
SportsKeeda
| POLL | ||
January 13 | 47 answers Lakers Star Hints at Leaving L.A With Cryptic Post Who Do You Think Will be the First Laker to be Traded Away? | ||
| D'Angelo Russell | 22 | 46.8 % |
| Rui Hachimura | 7 | 14.9 % |
| Austin Reaves | 10 | 21.3 % |
| Other | 8 | 17 % |
| LIST OF POLL | ||
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