The Lakers selected D’Angelo Russell with the No. 2 overall draft pick and plan to throw him into the fire right away alongside Kobe Bryant. So far, Kobe says he’s been impressed with the young cat’s abilities. KB says Russell has been picking his brain, asking questions and most importantly, he’s going to make his life easier on the court—making the 37-year-old Bryant more of a catch and shoot player thanks to the rookie’s “ridiculous” playmaking skills. From Bill Oram of the OC Register:
Kobe: "Haven’t played with point guards that are playmakers at heart. D’Angelo is a ridiculous playmaker man. I’d much rather catch & shoot"
— Bill Oram (@billoram) October 3, 2015
Kobe elaborated on why he’s excited to play with Russell, in typical Kobe fashion:
Kobe said, "I do not like setting up the offense. I hate it." Said Phil made him do it in the triangle.
— Bill Oram (@billoram) October 3, 2015
Kobe: "You guys know I like scoring the ball, why the hell would I like setting the offense up?"
— Bill Oram (@billoram) October 4, 2015
And he also touched on how he’s trying to relate to the rook:
Kobe Bryant went full Murtaugh today when asked how he relates to D'Angelo Russell despite the 18-year age gap pic.twitter.com/vpFxZJRdiO
— Bill Oram (@billoram) October 4, 2015
