Earvin “Magic” Johnson would love to work with current Lakers’ starting point guard, D’Angelo Russell. AP/Danny Moloshok
NBA great Earvin “Magic” Johnson was appointed as an advisor for his former team, the Los Angeles Lakers, on Thursday (Friday in Manila), and it seems like he also wants to take a mentorship role to one of the team’s brightest young studs.
The 57-year-old NBA Hall of Famer, who’s undoubtedly the best point guard to ever don the purple and gold, has expressed his desire to take sophomore point guard D’Angelo Russell under his wing.
In a recent interview with Mike Bresnahan of Spectrum SportsNet, Johnson said he has high hopes for the 20-year-old floor general and was hoping to have a more hands-on approach towards his development.
Magic said he’d even help out in Laker practice if Luke Walton wanted it, mentioning D’Angelo Russell as a player he’d like to mentor.
— Mike Bresnahan (@Mike_Bresnahan) February 3, 2017
Blessed with excellent court vision and high basketball IQ, Russell has shown signs of brilliance and early glimpses of superstardom.
In his second year, however, the former Ohio Buckeye’s leadership and maturity levels have been questioned at times.
Russell has also been slowed down by a recent knee injury, but has shown progression in the past two games, marked by impressive outings against the Denver Nuggets and the Washington Wizards. He tallied 22 points and 10 rebounds, and 17 points and 11 assists, for these games, respectively.
Although taking a cue from Magic may not necessarily guarantee Russell’s improvement, the youngster could certainly learn a thing or two from the five-time NBA champion, considering they play the same position. Khristian Ibarrola