Four months earlier in this same building, D’Angelo Russell heard his name called by Commissioner Adam Silver, changing his life.
In Russell’s return to Barclays Center, the No. 2 overall draft pick played up to his selection’s billing by helping push the Lakers past Brooklyn, 104-98, for their first win of the season.
At first, it looked like another painful night for L.A. (1-4), which found itself trailing, 27-18, after one quarter. But then its heralded rookie provided the jump the Lakers needed to turn the game around.
Russell hit 3-of-4 for 10 second-quarter points, which included a pair of 3-pointers and an ankle-breaking crossover that sent Jarrett Jack to the floor (with some help from contact by Julius Randle).
“It’s just about doing the little things to stay on the floor,” Russell said.
The 19-year-old finished with 16 points and three steals, while serving as the linchpin in a 34-20 second quarter that put the Lakers up by five at halftime.
After going back and forth in the second half, L.A. led by just three with 29.5 seconds left when Roy Hibbert’s inbounds pass was challenged by Jack and tipped out of bounds off Lou Williams.
But instead of firing a potential game-tying shot, Brooklyn (0-6) gave the ball right back when Thaddeus Young could’t inbound before the five-second limit.
From there the Lakers — who outscored the Nets at the foul line, 31-15 — iced the game with six free throws.
D’Angelo was on a roll scoring 10pts in the 2nd quarter! #GoLakers @twcsportsnet / @twcdeportes
A video posted by Los Angeles Lakers (@lakers) on Nov 6, 2015 at 5:47pm PST
Team Effort While Russell’s performance shined brightest, it was a template team effort that snapped Brooklyn’s three-game winning streak over L.A.
The Nets were led by Brook Lopez (23 points, 10 rebounds), Joe Johnson (22 points) and Jack (18 points, 12 assists), and the Lakers countered with four players who scored 14 or more.
On a night when he missed his first six shots and went just 5-of-16 as a whole, Kobe Bryant led his team with 18 points, thanks in part to seven free throws. Like Russell, Jordan Clarkson had 16 points (6-of-12), while Julius Randle had 14 of his own, plus seven boards.
But after the game, Bryant was quick to point out a player who might get overlooked in the box score.
In his season debut, Metta World Peace made each of his 17 minutes count, as the Lakers outscored Brooklyn by 12 with him on the hardwood.
“Metta did a great job changing the tempo of the game,” Bryant said. “He was everywhere. At one point I leaned over to Julius and I said, ‘Imagine him when he was 22.'”
The 35-year-old version of World Peace had just three points and three rebounds, but he energized the Lakers defense and hit a key 3-pointer that broke a mid-third quarter tie and put L.A. up for good.
Metta’s #HollywoodNights debut
A photo posted by Los Angeles Lakers (@lakers) on Nov 6, 2015 at 5:27pm PST
D Leads to W Following World Peace’s lead, the Lakers put forth their best defensive performance of the season, despite early foul trouble on Hibbert. L.A. entered allowing 113.0 points per game — the NBA’s second-worst average — but it held the Nets to 15 below that.
The Lakers actually hit seven fewer shots than Brooklyn, but made up for it by bringing out the worst in a team that ranks second-to-last in 3-point percentage (24.4) and last in made free throws (14.0).
The Nets were able to get little out of both the 3-point and free throw lines, going 3-of-19 from deep and making 15 foul shots, which snapped a three-game winning streak over L.A.
“We were just much more aggressive,” head coach Byron Scott said. “Played with much more of a sense of urgency. I think those are the two biggest things, and the fact that Metta came in and gave us a lift. So did Larry Nance, Jr.
“Those guys came in, and the second unit didn’t really bog down. From an intensity standpoint, they probably raised it to another level.”
Notes Russell went without an assists in 23 minutes, but four Lakers tied for the team lead with three. … Nance made his NBA debut with six points and five rebounds in 16 minutes. … For the first time this season, neither Marcelo Huertas nor Ryan Kelly played. Brandon Bass was in for just three minutes. … The Lakers wore their black Hollywood Nights uniforms for the first time this year. … A sold-out crowd of 17,732 filled Barclays Center.
Goodnight Brooklyn pic.twitter.com/yveLWJCF6T
