Lakers' D'Angelo Russell plans to improve his consistency, leadership

EL SEGUNDO >> As one of the most prominent faces of the young Lakers, D’Angelo Russell sat at his exit meeting and listened to some honest feedback. Lakers president of basketball operations Magic Johnson, General Manager Rob Pelinka and Coach Luke Walton outlined three areas Russell needs to improve.

“Leadership, consistency and changing my body as much as possible,” Russell said following his exit meeting on Tuesday at the Lakers’ practice facility.

The Lakers’ front office talked to every player about improving their body-fat percentage and their consistency. But the Lakers want Russell, the No. 2 pick in the 2015 NBA draft, to add a dose of leadership to his scoring and passing.

“You need the credibility to a certain extent, but if your teammates see you doing it and what you’re trying to preach or they witness you trying to do the right thing at all times when no one is looking, it gives them a better perspective on you,” Russell said. “I feel like this year for me, it wasn’t consistent enough with my play, with my communication and everything. It wasn’t consistent enough for them to respect what I had to say.”

On one hand, the 21-year-old Russell had games that make the Lakers optimistic about his future.

He averaged 15.6 points, 4.8 assists, 3.5 rebounds and 1.4 steals per game, numbers that only Johnson matched as a Laker in his sophomore season. After averaging 14.2 points and 4.7 assists while shooting 39.2 percent in 26.5 minutes before the All-Star break, Russell then averaged 18.5 points and 5.0 assists while shooting 42.5 percent in 33.3 minutes afterward. His playmaking improved throughout the season.

“With everything we went through as a team,” Russell said, “it gave me a better blueprint on how I was going to try to attack the leadership qualities I know I have and bring them to light.”

On the other hand, Russell conceded he was “inconsistent at times.” His shooting percentage dropped slightly from his rookie season (41 percent) to his second season (40.5 percent). After averaging 2.6 turnovers before the All-Star break, he averaged 3.1 afterward. He was also held under 10 points in 14 games.

“The best thing about that is I can control that,” Russell said. “I can control how much work I put in for me to be consistent. I knew how hard I worked last summer and I saw the outcome for this year. So I’m just excited.”

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Russell also has experienced a different wave of emotions in recent weeks.

In what he described as a “crazy day for me,” Russell found out on April 9 that his paternal grandmother passed away. He initially told Walton, “I was getting on the next flight; I wasn’t going to play” during that night’s game against Minnesota at Staples Center. Family members talked with him, as did his best friend, who offered some perspective in what Russell called “a detailed conversation.”

“This is the start of your legacy. You will remember this day forever,” Russell’s friend said. “You play good or play bad, you will remember it. You play bad, the thing about that is you will remember you played bad and try to do whatever you can the next time to try to play well. If you play good, the same thing, you’ll try to keep that consistency up when adversity hits you.”

Russell then made the winning 3-pointer in the Lakers’ victory over Minnesota to cap a 16-point performance, four-assist, four-rebound performance.

“It was really trying to win,” Russell said. “That was my main focus throughout that game. My teammates and coaches made it easier to play.”

The Lakers then granted Russell permission to miss their last two games and the team’s scheduled exit meetings so he return to his hometown in Louisville, Ky., to grieve with family and attend his grandmother’s funeral. The Lakers also sent flowers to Russell’s family.

“You kind of got the freedom to do whatever you wanted. But when it wasn’t right, you really knew. She let you know,” Russell said of his grandmother. “But she was definitely a spoiling type. We had everything growing up. She was really big on right and wrong. What’s right is right and what’s wrong is wrong.”

Russell also has pledged to correct what the Lakers told him he has done wrong.

“I worked my tail off. I don’t think you’re going to play perfect every game,” Russell said. “But limiting the games you don’t play to your abilities, that’s my main focus.”