D'Angelo Russell has assumed the long thankless role of being the second-best teammate for LeBron James as the all-time great either carries you or is failed by you.
Outside of being a rodeo clown or a member of the Chicago White Sox, there’s arguably no worse gig in sports than being LeBron James’ second-best teammate. It’s a thankless role, one that exists within a narrow range of outcomes: James either carries you or is failed by you. In Miami, Chris Bosh sacrificed his All-NBA prime so that he could focus on playing exhausting defense and spacing the floor; Kevin Love has never fully recovered from the trauma of trying to fit in.
Over the last two years, the Lakers have won 62 percent of their 93 games with Russell and just 42 percent of their 62 without him. During that same time frame, the Lakers have outscored opponents by 4.62 points per 100 possessions with Russell on the court, but been outscored by 1.82 points per 100 possessions without him. At the risk of oversimplifying things, Russell’s impact represents the difference between the Lakers being the Knicks and being the Bulls.
Beyond his perimeter shooting, Russell excels in all the areas where point guards are expected to excel. As a pick-and-roll ball-handler, he scored 5.6 points per game, the most on the team; his 3:1 assist to turnover ratio was also the best on the team. With the ball in his hands, Russell rejects the typical vocabulary of basketball. He doesn’t slash or glide; he oozes. He finagles.
More, Russell loses his purpose in the playoffs. During the regular season, Russell serves a necessary function as James’s spotter; James is too old to marshall every possession, so Russell’s ability to keep the offense afloat across 82 games is very valuable. In the playoffs, Russell is shunted to the periphery as James reasserts his primacy. When James and Anthony Davis are at the center of every play, Russell is unnecessary.
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