Los Angeles Lakers star point guard D’Angelo Russell was effusive in his praise of Sacramento coach Mike Brown following their 120-107 loss on Wednesday, March 14, that marked a regular-season sweep.
“Mike Brown, honestly,” Russell told reporters when asked what makes the Kings hard to beat. “I know how good of a coach he is. I know what he’s done to that team and I know where they were before he got there and where they are now.
Obviously, they have players that are more than capable but the system that he’s put around those guys — everybody’s involved I would say and everybody’s lethal and I know his style. So, I know it’s what they do. It’s him for sure.”
D’Angelo Russell’s Dig at Darvin Ham
Russell’s high praise of their rival team’s coach came on the heels of an ESPN report detailing his clashes and a work-in-progress relationship with Lakers coach Darvin Ham.
A film session in early January, following a 110-96 loss to the short-handed Miami Heat, led to Ham and Russell clashing. The coach wanted to see better effort and execution; the player wanted to see sharper schemes. Ham was headstrong in his instructions, illustrating through the film where his team would “half-ass it through possessions,” he said.
Russell dismissed the lack of execution, focusing rather on an alternative approach he believed would be better for the team.
In their fourth straight loss against the Kings, and seventh in their last eight meetings, the Lakers again had no answer to Sacramento’s high-octane offense.
“I don’t know,” Russell told reporters when asked if they had learned anything from their losses. “They swept us all year so maybe if we play them again we’ll figure it out.”
Asked why they did not go to Rui Hachimura more often in the second half after the Japanese forward scored 17 points on 8 of 10 shots in the first two quarters, Russell had a cryptic answer.
“Yeah, I’d rather not go there with it. Good game for Rui,” Russell said.
Hachimura only had three points in the second half on a solitary 3-point attempt to finish with 20 points.
His short answers about what they did or did not do were a sharp contrast to his effusive praise of the Kings’ system under Brown.
‘Tough Night’
Russell had his worst game since he returned to the starting lineup in January.
The 28-year-old point guard started 0 of 7 from the floor and did not hit a field goal until the fourth quarter. He wound up with 6 points and 6 assists.
“Tough night for me,” Russell told reporters when asked about his performance.
But it was not only Russell.
Their top stars — LeBron James and Anthony Davis — also had subpar games.
James, who was battling cold and ankle issues, scored only 18 points on 6 of 16 shots. Davis had a quiet double-double of 22 points and 10 rebounds as he only hit 7 of 18 from the field.
Domantas Sabonis continued his dominance over Davis with his 23rd triple-double (17 points 19 rebounds and 10 assists).
Russell, James and Davis combined to shoot 5 of 22 in the first half which gave the Kings momentum.
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