LeBron And The Lakers Beat The Thunder As D’Angelo Russell Dominates

(CTN News) – D’Angelo Russell’s red-hot shooting helped the Los Angeles Lakers defeat the Oklahoma City Thunder on Monday night 116-104.

During the 34 minutes of play, the 28-year-old scored 26 points, grabbed six rebounds, made four steals and provided three assists. In total, he made nine of 17 shots and five of eleven three-point attempts.

The game went so well for Russell that when he tried to pass the ball to LeBron James, the ball was immediately returned to him with a look that essentially instructed him to shoot the ball.

It was James’ strategy that paid off, as Russell hit an absurd off-balance three while Jalen Williams was surrounded by him.

Russell’s third three-pointer in 70 seconds helped the Lakers extend their lead to 24 and effectively ended this game.

During the 2005-06 season, Kobe Bryant achieved these marks for the first time with Russell’s stat line on Monday.

Russell has been thought to eventually cool off, which will pose problems for a Lakers team that has not been able to find consistent success from beyond the arc.

The event has not yet taken place, and we are almost two months into Russell’s hot streak. Since Jan. 17, he has averaged 22.1 points on 46.4 percent shooting (44.4 percent from beyond the arc) and 6.4 assists per game.

Players and fans of the Lakers are taking notice of Russell’s efforts and appreciate the way in which he is elevating the team for the stretch run.

Despite good performances by James, Anthony Davis and Austin Reaves, Russell’s performance overshadowed them. With 19 points, 11 rebounds, and eight assists, James fell two assists short of a triple-double.

A total of 24 points, 12 rebounds, and three blocks were recorded by Davis in 30 minutes of play. In addition to scoring 16 points on four-of-five shooting from three-point range, Reaves also contributed seven assists and six rebounds.

In the event that the Lakers are able to advance beyond the play-in tournament, they will almost certainly feel confident about their chances against Oklahoma City. In the regular season, they defeated the Thunder three times out of four.

Only the Lakers have defeated the Thunder three times this season. Furthermore, Oklahoma City was knocked down from the top seed in the Western Conference, though it remains tied with the Minnesota Timberwolves in terms of losses.

On Wednesday, the Los Angeles Lakers will face the Sacramento Kings in an effort to win their fourth game in a row.

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