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LA Lakers point guard D’Angelo Russell is already enjoying the offseason. He is also pulling out all the stops for his partner Laura Ivaniukas’ birthday on May 9. Russell chartered a helicopter ride for him and his girlfriend on Tuesday and made a pit stop for a cute picnic on top of the Lakers home arena.
Russell showed off the move on his Instagram stories. The couple is seen embracing on top of the Crypto.com Arena after disembarking from the helicopter. You can watch the story on Russell’s Instagram here.
It was quite a move and birthday present for the mother of Russell’s children. The couple has one together and is expecting a second. Russell has high standards to live up to now for next year’s birthday celebration.
Exploring options for D'Angelo Russell and Lakers this summer
The Lakers will likely make some moves this offseason to try to entice LeBron James to return for at least one more year. They have already fired coach Darvin Ham and will have personnel decisions to make.
D’Angelo Russell will be one of the biggest ones for the Lakers. Russell could opt out of his player option and become a free agent. He has one year left on his deal in the form of an option worth $18.6 million.
Russell could also opt-out under the understanding that the Lakers will bring him back on a cheaper deal. Russell could also opt-in, and the Lakers may use him as an expiring contract in a trade to acquire another star.
He can only be traded this summer if he picks up his option or agrees to sign and trade with another team. Russell boosted his trade stock by shooting a career-high 41.5 percent from 3-point range this season.
When D'Angelo Russell played well, the Lakers did well. LA was 15-3 when Russell scored at least 25 points. However, he once again showed his usual production decline in the playoffs, registering zero points against the Denver Nuggets in Game 3 this season.
The Lakers will also have to navigate the luxury tax aprons with the new CBA as a repeat tax team. They could get some breathing room if Russell declines his option. That would give them the midlevel $12.9 million exception to sign a free agent.
D'Angelo Russell has the choice to seek that same exception in free agency if he wants to play on a new team. Russell off the books would give the Lakers more flexibility to add a player and stay below the first luxury tax apron.
They would likely need to bring in a point guard to take over the ball-handling duties that Russell provided. Guard Gabe Vincent could also slide into the role if he stays healthy next season.
