The Lakers got off to a strong start against the Nuggets in Game 1 of the 2024 NBA Playoffs, but the defending champs eventually took over to come away with the victory.
Los Angeles was led by Anthony Davis, who dominated to the tune of 32 points, 14 rebounds, five assists and four blocks. LeBron James had his moments, setting the tone early for the Lakers to finish with 27 points, eight assists and six rebounds.
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The problem for L.A. is that it didn’t get much outside of Davis and James. Quiet as Austin Reaves and Rui Hachimura were, it was D’Angelo Russell who was under the microscope after the game.
Here is what you need to know about Russell’s performance and what it means moving forward.
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D’Angelo Russell Game 1 stats vs. Nuggets
Russell finished Game 1 with 13 points on 6-for-20 shooting from the field and 1-for-9 from 3-point range. He attempted the second-most shots on the Lakers, sitting between Davis (23) and James (16).
Russell added three rebounds, three assists and two steals while turning the ball over once. His lone turnover — a bad pass in transition that was picked off by Kentavious Caldwell-Pope and led to a 3-pointer from Jamal Murray — came in the third quarter when the Nuggets outscored the Lakers 32-18 to take over the game.
As ESPN’s Bob Myers noted on the broadcast, James didn’t seem very happy with Russell when it happened.
D’Angelo Russell stats vs. Nuggets in 2023 NBA Playoffs
This continues a troubling trend for Russell, who struggled against the Nuggets last postseason.
Russell went from playing 31.1 minutes per game against the Grizzlies in the first round to 23.5 minutes against the Nuggets in the Conference Finals. He also lost his starting spot to Hachimura in Game 4 of the series, leading to Russell playing only 15 minutes.
Including the 2023 Western Conference Finals, Russell is now 3-for-24 from 3-point range in his last five playoff games against the Nuggets. It’s an unfortunate development for the one-time All-Star, who averaged 18.0 points per game on a career-best 41.5 percent shooting from 3 in the 2023-24 regular season.
The Lakers will likely need Russell to provide a scoring punch to have any chance against the Nuggets. Their other options are reducing his minutes and giving more opportunities to the likes of Spencer Dinwiddie, Gabe Vincent and Taurean Prince.
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Will the Lakers bench D’Angelo Russell?
After Game 1, Lakers head coach Darvin Ham said he’s not going to bench Russell because of one poor shooting performance, per The Athletic’s Jovan Buha. Ham reportedly added that Russell helped the Lakers get to this point with his performance in the regular season and the team’s Play-In win over the Pelicans, which saw him score 21 points on 5-for-11 shooting from deep.
The Lakers won’t have long to figure out adjustments, as Game 2 will take place on Monday, April 22.
