![]() “I know this from being here (before): The fans are ready to explode at a certain point in the game,” Russell said. He returned to the starting lineup with a spring in his step, hitting five 3-pointers while both making and celebrating a series of high-difficulty plays that had the Lakers’ home crowd roaring repeatedly. Russell was the centerpiece of the Lakers’ activity at the trade deadline, but the point guard appeared in only four games to begin his second stint in Los Angeles before spraining his right ankle. “That’s a sign of how deep and talented we are.” “That we were able to come away with this win against a really good team with only eight from (Davis), that’s a sign of growth,” Lakers coach Darvin Ham said. The superstar big man had only eight points and nine rebounds while struggling against Toronto’s defense, but Russell and the Lakers’ reserves took charge before Davis sealed the win on his only field goal of the second half with 46 seconds to play. LOS ANGELES (AP) - D’Angelo Russell had 28 points and nine assists in his dynamic return from a six-game injury absence, and Dennis Schröder added 23 points and seven assists in the surging Los Angeles Lakers’ 122-112 victory over the Toronto Raptors on Friday night.Īustin Reaves scored 18 points while Rui Hachimura and Jarred Vanderbilt added 16 apiece as the Lakers won for the seventh time in nine games even with little contribution this time from Anthony Davis. The worst-case scenario, Harden leaving for no return in free agency, is possible.īut with so much at stake this season and Harden apparently content to play out the year in Brooklyn, the Nets will keep Harden through the trade deadline and let the chips fall where they may in the summer. As a fallback, an opt-in-and-trade or sign-and-trade could still yield significant return. The Nets’ best bet is impressing in the playoffs enough that Harden feels good about staying beyond this season. So, while maybe the Nets should at least listen to Harden trade offers, it’s nearly unfathomable Brooklyn gets one worth making. Who knows what other teams Harden would approve of? Though it seems Harden likes Philadelphia, Simmons doesn’t necessarily work as return. Plus, most teams that would trade for Harden would want assurance he won’t leave in free agency. ![]() Brooklyn can’t assume that’ll be the case every season as the 33-year-old ages. ![]() Kevin Durant has been playing at an extremely high level and is expected to be healthy for the playoffs. But Irving said he’s rooted in remaining unvaccinated, and the New York City vaccine mandate that bars him from home games has no end in sight. There’s a case to trade Harden now for assets that would help the Nets in a future year when Kyrie Irving is more available. If Harden helps Brooklyn win the 2022 title, that would more than justify keeping Harden through the trade deadline – even if he leaves outright this summer. They’re championship favorites this year. He reportedly always wanted to join Brooklyn for two years – not necessarily longer.īut the Nets shouldn’t be prioritizing long-term, anyway. This shouldn’t totally assuage concern about Harden leaving the Nets this offseason. The Brooklyn Nets won’t listen to trade-deadline overtures for All-NBA guard James Harden, a resolve rooted in Harden’s repeated insistences to ownership and management that he’s committed to staying and winning a championship with the franchise, sources told ESPN. Would Brooklyn trade Harden before he can leave for no return this summer? He might be interested in the 76ers, who have the most-available star ( star?) on the trade market in Ben Simmons. He can become an unrestricted free agent this offseason. James Harden is reportedly frustrated with the Nets.
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