A report alleges that the Los Angeles Lakers aren’t actively looking to trade point guard D’Angelo Russell with the Feb. 8 trade deadline just under two months away.
“Russell is having a nice season, though, and the Lakers aren’t actively shopping him, sources told Hoops Wire,” Sam Amico wrote.
Last month, a rumor emerged that rival NBA executives believe Russell along with Rui Hachimura are potential trade candidates for the Lakers this season.
The floor general is off to a very impressive start to the 2023-24 regular season. He is averaging 16.6 points, 3.3 rebounds and 6.3 assists per game while shooting 48.3 percent from the field and 40.5 percent from behind the 3-point arc.
Russell played well in the team’s In-Season Tournament matchup over the Indiana Pacers on Dec. 9. In 32 minutes of playing time, the 27-year-old dropped 13 points, four rebounds, seven assists, one block and one steal while shooting 6-of-15 from the field.
Russell and the Lakers ended up winning the game against the Pacers by a score of 123-109 to secure the inaugural In-Season Tournament championship.
The point guard is in his second stint as a member of the storied Lakers franchise. Before he was reacquired by the team via trade during the 2022-23 regular season, Russell was drafted by Los Angeles with the No. 2 overall pick in the 2015 NBA Draft.
He spent the first two seasons of his career with the Lakers and then was dealt to the Brooklyn Nets in the summer of 2017 along with Timofey Mozgov in exchange for Brook Lopez and Kyle Kuzma, who was the No. 27 pick in the 2017 NBA Draft.
After facing off against a tough opponent in the Dallas Mavericks on Tuesday, the Lakers will play Victor Wembanyama and the San Antonio Spurs on Dec. 13 and Dec. 15. The Spurs have been arguably the worst team in the NBA this season, as they own a poor 3-19 record — the worst in the Western Conference — and have lost 17 games in a row.
For perspective on just how long it has been since the Spurs have picked up a win, their last victory came against the Phoenix Suns back on Nov. 2, which was over a month ago.
