Lakers News: Darvin Ham Defends Re-Signed LA Role Player He Keeps Benching

The Los Angeles Lakers took down the Dallas Mavericks in impressive fashion on Wednesday evening by a score of 127-110. Los Angeles led the entire way, and they were sparked by the scoring of point guard D'Angelo Russell.

Russell scored 29 points to help them get the win, and it was a game that they desperately needed. Since re-joining the team, Russell has been at the center of criticism for inconsistent play. However, his effort against Dallas showed exactly what he could do on the floor.

Lakers head coach Darvin Ham defended Russell after his strong performance against the Mavericks.

"We re-signed him because we knew he could help us. We still believe he can help us. We believe in him...Everyone keeps talking about -- it's that time of the year I guess, with the trade talk ... The reality of it is, we have what we had down the stretch last year, as well as more firepower ... We can stop looking around and just look at ourselves ... There's a ton of excellent basketball that we can play. ... He's right at the forefront of that."

Darvin Ham on D’Angelo Russell: We re-signed him because we knew he could help us. We still believe he can help us. We believe in him...Everyone keeps talking about -- it's that time of the year I guess, with the trade talk ... The reality of it is, we have what we had down the… pic.twitter.com/YRszsZoUxU
— michael corvo (@michaelcorvo_) January 18, 2024

Russell has had his fair share of mistakes this year, and he isn't a perfect player. But he serves this team well and has made all the effort to get better.

In 38 games played, he is averaging 15.7 points and 6.1 assists per game. But he has also shot 40.1% from three-point land, which has helped this team.

All of the different lineup changes for the Lakers have caused confusion and frustration from many players, especially Russell. But he seems to be in a much better groove right now, and the hope is that it stays that way.

It remains to be seen if he will indeed be traded at the trade deadline, but for now, he is their starting point guard. Russell has shown that he can play within this system, and he has done it rather effectively.