D’Angelo Russell says he was playing ‘at a high level’ with Lakers last season

It’s easy to forget, but D’Angelo Russell played his best basketball as a Laker last year.

D'Angelo Russell has been a hot topic of conversation for Lakers fans since the moment he was drafted. Back then, it was about how good he was and whether he was the roster's best prospect.

Now, the conversation has shifted to whether it is good enough to be on a team that wins it all.

One thing that can't be debated but is often forgotten is how good D'Angelo Russell was for the Lakers last season.

He had the best 3-point shooting season of any Laker ever, setting the franchise's single-season 3-point record. He had epic moments like his January game against the Golden State Warriors, where he scored 28 points, including a dagger three in overtime to seal the win.

In the stats department, he also had his best numbers in a Lakers uniform, averaging 18.8 points and 6.3 assists per game.

Russell appeared on a recent episode of the "Run Your Race" podcast and talked about how good he was last season.

“Coming here last year (2022-23), when I came, we clicked right away and I was like, ‘Dang, this is not what I expected.’ We were playing at a high level. Hot potatoed the ball, backdoor, no look lob it was just like ‘That’s basketball,’ and we were on the same page and we had no time to get there. We just did it. And then we went through adversity first time against Denver and that was when, team’s were trapping him, blitzing me, denying this, and it was like we haven’t seen that all year and we get swept.

Then we go into this year, we had time to prep just like our core guys that we had. We weren’t healthy, but we had a good core from last year and we were playing at such a high level again and in the midst of it, I’m like ‘We’re not winning, we’re trying to get this game, we’re trying to do this, we’re trying to win” but now looking back I’m like ‘dang, bro I was really hooping at a high level with this dude that like dominates the game.’”

Russell didn't specify the moment when he was playing his best, but when looking at his production, January was his best month of the season. He shot 45% from 3-point range and averaged 22.7 points per game, his highest month averages of the season.

His play was so sensational that it reportedly made the Lakers "rethink things" at the trade deadline and kept the guard in Los Angeles.

However, Russell and the Lakers' season ended poorly. The Nuggets once again beat the Lakers in the playoffs and L.A. mustered just one victory in the series. Russell's numbers dipped all across the board in the postseason and he had an abysmal Game 3, scoring zero points in his 24 minutes of action.

Those low points during key moments can't be denied, but they also shouldn't diminish everything he did to help the Lakers get there.

This is Russell's duality. When he's great, he makes you look like a fool for doubting him. When he's bad, he reminds you why he's bounced around the league and is a good player but not an All-Star.

Still, more often than not, you get good Russell more than bad Russell. With him opting into his contract with the Lakers, you can expect more of both in the 2024-25 campaign.

You can follow Edwin on Twitter at @ECreates88.