D’Angelo Russell and Karl-Anthony Towns are friends, in case you didn’t know. And they plan to train together this summer, ahead of their third season in the NBA.
Per the Orange County Register‘s Mark Medina:
Playing on different teams in different time zones, Lakers guard D’Angelo Russell and Minnesota center Karl-Anthony Towns often rely on phone conversations and text messages to maintain their strong friendship.
During those exchanges, Towns said he can tell Russell has the right perspective of a second NBA season that has featured lots of losing and inconsistent performances.
“Everything’s a learning process. He’s learning real well,” Towns said of Russell. “He talks very confidently and very positively. He’s very happy with everything and he sees the team is growing. He can’t wait to take that next step as a team.”
Russell traces his optimism to something simple.
“Just knowing everybody goes through their ups and downs through this league,” Russell said. “Always keeping that in the back of my mind.”
I’m not really sure how these two can benefit from working out together. They play different positions. Their games are so, so different as well.
But Towns has thrived in a role that features him shimmying between on- and off-ball responsibilities. That know-how could come in handy for Russell, who figures to slide between the 1 and the 2 for his career. If the Los Angeles Lakers draft Lonzo Ball or Markelle Fultz, it forces Russell into full-time shooting guard duty, in which case he’ll need to hone his off-ball offense.
By his own admission, though, dancing between the two positions has been a bigger challenge defensively. Towns can help Russell there to some extent, but he’s learning the switching ropes himself. Maybe the two of them plan to perfect their perimeter stands and rotations together. Perhaps they’ll just be lifting weights and getting up shots. Who knows?
And, hell, who cares?
It’s just cool that Towns and Russell seem to be such close friends at all.
