Originally compiled from: LA Times
WRITTEN BY DAN WOIKE
原标题：Lakers guard D’Angelo Russell not lacking confidence before Grizzlies series
The first round of the playoffs between the Lakers and Grizzlies is just around the corner, and now we're focusing on Russell — the Lakers' X-factor:
Russell's form has been up and down recently
It's hard to shake something that seems unshakable, like the memory of eight missed shots, like being able to watch from the sidelines when the team is in a crucial moment.
He has played three games since returning to the Lakers, but D'Angelo Russell will clearly not be shaken by this, he is not only confident in his ability, but also calmly expresses his ability.
"I like the way I do things. I really appreciate it... I'm a fan of myself," he said after his All-Star break. "I'm just modestly saying that."
He's not kidding.
The Lakers will enter the playoffs with the momentum of winning the playoffs, an easy-to-forget shooting battle and a game in which Russell was pressed onto the bench by coach Davin Hamm with backup point guard Dennis Schroder after shooting one of nine.
For the first time since that game, Russell spoke publicly about his poor performance against the Timberwolves, where he had eight assists that won't shake the way he plays the rest of the game, when the Lakers face No. 2 seed Grizzlies in Memphis on Sunday.
"I think I can get the team running at any point in the game. I just have to be there and get this done," Russell said after the team's training Friday practice. "If I'm not on the pitch and the coach has other arrangements, I have to accept that. But if he sends me on before the end of the game, I can easily... 10 consecutive shots. I'm that type of player.
“...... Honestly, we need to win. We are hungry for victory. For me, dwelling on this, feeling frustrated or having low confidence, I don't think is the right way to deal with it. I am absolutely willing to do anything, do everything I can, to avoid getting into this situation again in the future. ”
Russell has shown the Lakers his ability to handle adversity. After losing to the Dallas Mavericks and Houston Rockets, Russell shot nearly 54 percent from the field in his final eight games, averaging 16.9 points per game.
While you may have to change your style of play once you make the playoffs, keeping everything as normal as possible and getting the Lakers as close as possible to the style that helped them become one of the best teams in the West after All-Star is a top priority.
Free throws are a key factor in the game
After All-Star, the Lakers averaged an NBA-high 28.3 free throws per game, 7.5 more than the Grizzlies' average of free throws in the same time period. The Lakers don't foul much either—they're averaging 16.4 fouls per game after All-Stars, the best in the league. And after the All-Star, only the Toronto Raptors have fewer fouls than the Grizzlies.
"With or without a whistle, we have work to do. It's my message to my team all season," Hamm said. "On the other hand, our message to the players is also not to compromise, not to try to win free throws. So I think there are two sides to this information, they coexist, because now we have a responsibility to play well. If we're weak, or we're trying to get help or whatever, that's going to affect our defense in turn because we're going to complain instead of quickly going back to our own half to play back.
"The referee, we, are all emotional. It's also an emotional exercise. We are passionate about what is happening. But back to the game itself, you just have to go and play well. You have to play as hard as you can. And usually, the team that plays the hardest usually gets a favorable whistle. ”
Defender Austin Reeves, who did not get a piece of those whistles in this play-off, made only three free throws.
"I think it's going to be a more physical focus." "The Grizzlies play a clear way of playing, and they're also a super physical team," he said. So I think that's the essence of this series. This is similar to the situation on previous game nights. So as long as you go to the game with that mentality, nothing will change. Everything is still decided by basketball. ”
The Lakers are well prepared
The Lakers had gone two days without training before they started training on Friday, and they should be better able to cope with Sunday's physical and mental challenges because of their break.
In their first all-out training session since winning the play-offs, only Schroder did not show up after spraining his ankle on Tuesday, which Hamm said was a precaution.
"The last month and a half, two months, every game has been very critical, so it's like a psychological war. You have to punch in every game because those games have to be won," Reeves said. 'Obviously it's the same now, but we've had really good days in the last few days.'
The Lakers left Los Angeles on Friday to travel to Memphis to adjust to the time zone change and will start the game early Sunday at 2 p.m. in Tennessee. Hamm joked Friday that when he was a player, his team would not be in town until 10am on Sunday, but now recuperation specialists and team doctors have helped make those decisions.
By the time the Lakers played Game 2 on Wednesday, they had been in town for five nights.
Russell and the Lakers are full of confidence
"I think it's great. It's possible to get there early and get used to the site and surroundings," Russell said. "I want to make the hotel room like my apartment. There were candles, my own blankets and things like that. Going early gives me a day to make the hotel feel like home.
"I think it's a good thing."
In any case, even a cold hand doesn't allow Russell to sit on the sidelines with peace of mind, because even then, he swears not to change the way he plays.
"I'm trying to prove that I'm that type of player. I could have had 15 assists that night, 20 assists. If I can't score, I can still control the game. It's that simple," Russell said. "And if I score the goal, the game may be over. So, as long as I understand for myself that I am the type of player, whether the coach decides to send me on the field or not, I will not lose any confidence. I just need to know that I'm that type of player.
"Everyone who understands understands."
Russell was certainly one of those people.
Are you optimistic about Russell's performance in the Lakers playoffs?