/ STAFF WRITER
OKLAHOMA CITY – The buzzer just sounded, signaling both the Lakers’ first loss of the 2016-17 season and the end of a frustrating game filled with endless whistles.
Before Lakers forward Julius Randle could express any more frustration, Lakers guard D’Angelo Russell wrapped his arm around him and offered some encouraging words.
“When we lose, we can’t be separated or anything like that,” Russell said after the Lakers’ loss to Utah on Friday. “That’s when we have to come together. I was trying to preach that.”
The incident highlighted Russell’s emergence as a leader before the Lakers (1-1) visit the Oklahoma City Thunder today at Chesapeake Energy Arena.