Getty D'Angelo Russell #1 of the Brooklyn Nets reacts during their game against the Sacramento Kings at Golden 1 Center on March 19, 2019 in Sacramento, California.
D’Angelo Russell will have another chance to prove his worth when the Brooklyn Nets visit the Los Angeles Lakers on Friday night.
Friday, March 22 at 10:30 PM ET
STAPLES Center
Coverage: NBA League Pass
*All odds and betting info courtesy of OddsShark and originally posted by Bookmaker
- Brooklyn Nets (PK at -110) vs. Los Angeles Lakers
- Over/Under: 228.5 at -110
Recent Takeaways
D-Lo dropped 27 (!) in the fourth and a career-high 44 PTS. Sheesh.
D’Angelo Russell scored a career-high 44 points (27 in the fourth quarter) and Rondae Hollis-Jefferson made a game-winning layup to help the Nets rally from 28 points down in the second half and beat the Kings 123-121 on Tuesday night, snapping a four-game losing streak.
The Nets trailed by 25 points after three quarters and the win makes them the fourth team since 1954-55 to erase a 25-point fourth quarter deficit. Russell went 10-for-15 in the fourth quarter and even scored 16 straight points during one stretch. Brooklyn is in seventh place in the Eastern Conference, a game over Miami and just a half-game behind Detroit for sixth place.
D’Angelo Russell dropped 44 points on 42% usage and 35 true shot attempts. He was 6/7 at the rim and 6/15 behind the arc. Of his 12 assists, 10 led to shots in the restricted area and 2 to 3s, amounting to 26 points. On defense, he had 4 steals.
Positive Residual explained how impressive Russell’s performance was:
D’Angelo Russell dropped 44 points on 42% usage and 35 true shot attempts. He was 6/7 at the rim and 6/15 behind the arc. Of his 12 assists, 10 led to shots in the restricted area and 2 to 3s, amounting to 26 points. On defense, he had 4 steals.
The most encouraging part of his performance was how he mixed 3-pointers with attacks at the rim during crunch time, as he usually settles for midrange jumpers.
🎥 Kentavious Caldwell-Pope had his highest scoring game of the season, dropping 35 points with 8 three-pointers against the Bucks.
The Lakers lost their fourth straight, 115-101 on the road against the Bucks last Tuesday and they’re now just 1-9 in their last 10 games, with another setback eliminating them from the playoffs, although the team has been looking ahead to next season for a while.
Kentavious Caldwell-Pope had a season-high 35 points and Kyle Kuzma added 17 points for the Lakers, who didn’t have LeBron James due to a sore left groin, the same injury that caused him to miss 17 games between December and January. James participated in half of practice on Thursday and Lakers head coach Luke Walton expects him to play on Friday.
Nets vs. Lakers Trends and Prediction
The Brooklyn Nets are:
- 8-2 ATS in their last 10 road games against a team with a winning home record
- 10-3 ATS in their last 13 games against Western Conference opponents
- 10-3 ATS in their last 13 games playing with two days of rest
The Los Angeles Lakers are:
- 6-24-1 ATS in their last 31 games against Eastern Conference opponents
- 3-13 ATS in their last 16 games overall
- 3-14 ATS in their last 17 games when their opponent allows 100 points or more in their previous game
- 1-7 ATS in their last eight games following a straight up loss
- 1-7 ATS in their last eight games following an ATS loss
These two teams met on December 18 and the Nets beat the Lakers 115-110 in Brooklyn behind 22 points and a career-high-tying 13 assists from D’Angelo Russell. LeBron James led the Lakers with 36 points, 13 rebounds and eight assists.
The Lakers and Nets went on opposite directions since that first meeting and this will be an emotional game for D’Angelo Russell, who’s coming back to Los Angeles after leading his team to the greatest comeback in franchise history, while playing in the middle of a playoff race and with a chance to prove the Lakers wrong. Russell will make a statement in this game, you just can’t trust in Rajon Rondo and Alex Caruso to stop him.
Pick: Nets PK
READ NEXT: Amir Coffey NBA Draft Profile: Latest Projections & Stock