NBA trade rumors 2016: LA Lakers may lose D'Angelo Russell?

Taken as second in the 2015 NBA Draft, expectations were understandably high for the Los Angeles Lakers guard D'Angelo Russell.

Coming out of the Ohio State University, Russell was initially thought of as the future of the team who can play alongside their core of young stars like Julius Randle and Jordan Clarkson.

Yet, while he has displayed flashes of what he can do on the court, Russell has not been the star that everyone expected him to be.

In his first year in the league, Russell finished the season averaging 13.2 points and 3.3 assists per game. He also shot 41 percent from the field but was largely a disappointment for the hopeful Lakers.

However, the biggest factor with Russell is his transition from being a college player to a basketball professional.

It can be recalled that Russell got entangled in a big controversy earlier this year after he filmed teammate Nick Young and revealed personal information to the public.

This has resulted in many of his teammates having trust issues with the Lakers' point guard and it gave him a bad name as he was supposed to be the leader on the floor.

Now with the season behind them, talks of a possible trade are surrounding Russell this early. The Lakers are looking for an established player to bring them back to their glory days and rumor has it that they are interested in getting Derrick Rose from the Chicago Bulls that could send Russell elsewhere.

However, according to SilverScreenAndRoll, general manager Mitch Kupchak told Russell not to worry about anything regarding the trade, and it seems the NBA starlet is listening to his boss.

Yet if Russell does end up staying with the Lakers, he should have a chip on his shoulder to prove that he has matured and has what it takes to be a premier point guard in the league.

The Lakers have and will always be a big franchise and will always draw attention. Hopefully, Russell will use this off-season to learn the ropes and come out of it a better leader.