NBA Rumors: D'Angelo Russell likely to sign with Lakers for 2023-24 NBA Season 

The Athletic's Jovan Buha said that D'Angelo Russell will likely be back with the LA Lakers on the "Late Night Lake Show" podcast,.

According to Buha, there doesn't seem to be that much traction from other teams as it pertains to Russell entering free agency. Even with the Lakers' plan to bring back Russell for the upcoming season, it looks to be on a shorter deal.

The shorter deal makes sense for the Lakers, who just drafted Jalen Hood-Schifino with the 17th pick in the 2023 draft.

Hood-Schifino, a 6-foot-6 point guard, played for the Indiana Hoosiers. He averaged 13.5 points per game (41.7% shooting, including 33.3% from 3-point range).

For Lakers general manager Rob Pelinka, he sees Hood-Schifino as an important developmental piece for the team's young core moving forward.

Whether that means cutting down D'Angelo Russell's minutes as Austin Reaves is still on the roster alongside Hood-Schifino, then fans can expect some form of role change in the upcoming season.

During the 2022-23 season, Russell averaged 17.4 ppg (48.4% shooting, including 41.4% from 3-point range) and 6.1 assists. Russell was a huge acquisition for the Lakers at the trade deadline as helped in turning the team's season around.

He had some stellar performances as well during the Lakers' postseason run as he averaged 13.3 ppg (42.6% shooting, including 31.0% from 3-point range).

However, he had his worst outings during the Western Conference finals against the Denver Nuggets. Against Denver, D'Angelo Russell averaged only 6.3 ppg (32.3% shooting, including 13.3% from 3-point range).

During the Lakers' elimination game, as they were down 3-0, Russell didn't show up as he only had four points.

NBA insider Sean Deveney on rumors regarding LeBron James' feelings toward D'Angelo Russell

In a Yardbarker article by Charles Kruger, he mentioned what NBA insider Sean Deveney found out from a Western Conference team executive concerning James' feelings towards Russell.

“I hate to say one playoff series can change a franchise’s whole outlook on a guy, because that just does not happen," Deveney said, "but it is happening with some of the people in that building, maybe most significantly, with LeBron."

During the Western Conference finals against the Denver Nuggets, Russell seemingly could not get a shot to go down. Compared to how he performed in the matchups against the Memphis Grizzlies and even the Golden State Warriors, the Lakers guard did not look like himself against Denver.