D'Angelo Russell gives sneak peek into 2024 NBA Playoffs sneaker collection with pair of Dwyane Wade's "Way of Wade" shoes
In 2019, Dwyane Wade, under his shoe line “Way of Wade” with Chinese shoe giant Li-Ning, added D'Angelo Russell as an endorser. “D-Lo” made the All-Star that year while playing for the Brooklyn Nets before he was sent to the Golden State Warriors in the Kevin Durant trade. While he has changed teams a handful of times, he remains a part of Wade’s brand.
Russell will try to help the LA Lakers avenge the sweep the Denver Nuggets gave them in last year's conference finals. The point guard has been playing well since it looked like he was going to be playing elsewhere before the trade deadline arrived. Lakers coach Darvin Ham is hoping he can bounce back after having a terrible series against the Nuggets last season.
Leading into the Game 1 showdown against the defending champs, D'Angelo Russell had this to show on Instagram:
Russell showed a glimpse of the new “Way of the Wade” shoes that he will be using for the said matchup in Mile High City. LA’s starting point guard was hyped to see the colorful pair, particularly the one having the Lakers’ purple and gold theme.
D'Angelo Russell wore “Way of Wade” shoes in some of his best games with the Lakers this season
D'Angelo Russell had been wearing “Way of Wade” shoes in several of his best games this season for the LA Lakers. He had the purple and gold colorway of the Li-Ning Wade All City 12 on Dec. 21 when he had three blocks against the Minnesota Timberwolves. Unfortunately, LA lost the game, 118-111 despite Russell’s all-around effort.
In the NBA In-Season Tournament quarterfinal game against the Houston Rockets, Russell wore Li-Ning Wade All City 11. He filled up the box scores, tallying nine points, seven assists and five steals in the LA Lakers to a 107-97 victory.
In arguably D'Angelo Russell’s most impressive game of the season, the “Way of the Wade” wasn’t part of his gear. Instead, he laced up a pair of Li-Ning JB [Jimmy Butler) 2 Valentine’s Day to lead the LA Lakers to a 138-122 pounding of the Utah Jazz. “D-Lo” ended the night with 11 points, 17 assists, nine rebounds, one steal and just two turnovers.
Russell was bullied by the Denver Nuggets last season that he was eventually benched for Dennis Schroder in Game 4. With Schroder playing the majority of the minutes at point guard, the LA Lakers almost broke through in the series.
“D-Lo” will be hoping he will have a better 2024 NBA Playoffs versus Denver while wearing Dwyane Wade’s “Way of Wade” shoes.