Last night's game was much bigger than basketball for D'Angelo Russell.
The Los Angeles Lakers point guard was informed Sunday morning that his grandmother died. He wanted to catch a flight to his native Louisville, Ky., but instead suited up for a matchup versus the Minnesota Timberwolves.
"Honestly, I knew that's what my grandma would have wanted," Russell said of opting to play, as quoted by Joey Ramirez of Lakers.com. "My dad, my brothers - everybody wanted me to play. I wanted to get away from basketball."
The 21-year-old listened to his family, taking to the Staples Center court. Down two with the clock expiring, he was ready on the left wing where he pulled up for a 3-pointer at the buzzer, which hit the rim before eventually falling through the hoop.
Russell had won the contest for the Lakers.
In his mind, though, he won it for his grandma. After briefly celebrating with his teammates, DLo sprinted into the stands right into his brother's arms.
"I didn't want to express myself through basketball," the sophomore guard said. "But that's the only option I kind of had, so I tried to take advantage of it."
Russell finished with 16 points, four dimes, four bounds, and three steals in 34 minutes.