The Lakers head coach does not regret not playing Russell in the last quarter against the Warriors.
D'Angelo Russell sat on the bench as the Los Angeles Lakers ended their 34-point blowout loss to the Golden State Warriors, the same place he observed the entire fourth quarter. For the fifth time in 14 games, the second overall pick in the 2015 NBA Draft did not play a second in the final period of a Lakers game. Although the Warriors held an insurmountable 89-55 lead entering the fourth, most observers would agree that Russell could learn more from playing against actual NBA players than from watching garbage time.