Not long after the Los Angeles Lakers season ended, rookie point guard D'Angelo Russell was already back in the gym. The offseason has seen some good news for Russell, like when it was announced he and teammate Julius Randle had been invited to join Team USA's select team that will play against the candidates to head to the Olympics, but it wasn't without its disappointments as well.
The NBA announced that Russell had finished ninth overall in Rookie of the Year voting on Monday, and while it is an honor to be considered one of the top ten rookies in such a loaded class, the relatively low finish was probably at least a little disappointing for the second overall pick in the draft.
Russell seems to be taking the small slight in stride, however, and posted a video on Instagram to subtly let Lakers fans know he was already back in the gym working on improving his game:
His trainer, Robbie Haught, posted additional video of Russell's work:
Russell may have finished lower in Rookie of the Year voting than he surely would have liked, but it's not about where you start, it's where you finish. Judging by Russell's offseason decisions, he seems to be intent on finishing much higher than where he's currently ranked.
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