D'Angelo Russell Discussion: Adopting A Professional Attitude

Yeah, that was my point. I know the technicalities, but it's just weird that a 32 year old player with over a decade of professional experience is considered a better rookie than a 21 year old who had only played 14 minutes of NBA basketball before this season.

 

Where's our daily video of him proving he's worthy to be a Laker this offseason? Tim?

 

Thank you based god

 

So lil b hit Harden with the no D curse?

 

I'm living on the edge...

 

*D'Angelo Russell.

 

I am confused by that tweet, but you guys seem happy so yay?

 

Barns said, "The Basedgod pardons D'Angelo's transgressions."

I gave it a like. No idea here either but it sounds like a good thing. May the Force be with us.

 

http://www.silverscreenandroll.com/...ft-dangelo-russell-ben-simmons-brandon-ingram

Great article on D'Angelo's progress last season. I've said all along I think he would be great and I've seen nothing to make me change that opinion. As crazy as it sounds that shooting slump he had at the end of the year was actually encouraging to me because he was still being aggressive, still got to the basket, still was able to get seperation and get quality looks. D'Lo simply had no legs and of course the tape fiasco didn't help matters.

The kid is just so smart. Kobe had a quote where he said D'Angelo was already playing and thinking two or three steps ahead. How many 19/20 year old kids play like that in year 1? Not many. Only the truly great ones. It's one thing to see things develop, but to able to anticipate where the defense is gonna be or how they're gonna defend a certain action instantly gives you an advantage. It's the same way guys like Steve Nash absolutely shredded defenses despite never being super athletic. Obviously improved strength specifically in his legs will help D'Angelo handle the physical nature of this game.

Most three point shots made I believe for a rookie Laker so his shot is already pretty solid. He made some strides defensively. He's become adept at getting in passing lanes. With his length he's hard for other point guards who are usually smaller to shoot over him. It allows him to recover easier if he gets blown by.

D'Angelo does need to add more of a variety of moves once he gets inside. He has a nice little floater, but he still gets blocked too often. He is crafty with the ball, but I'd like to see him add at least a couple of different shots around the rim.

It's no secret D'Angelo had his ups and downs in his rookie season. He struggled at times. Looked lost and even overwhelmed at times. Other times he looked fantastic. I felt like after that initial rough patch at the beginning of the season he really found his way. He started playing a better speed. Not going too fast, not going to slow. Just playing a nice pace that allowed himself to flourish more and be more under control and in a better rhythm.

His passing skills were apparent Day 1. What I felt really progressed was him starting to find that line between being a play maker and over passing and playing too tentative. He started to be more aggressive with his shot and he realized that would open his game up. People worried about his ability to drive past defenders, but I never really felt like that was an issue for him. He wasn't constantly blowing by players, but he was able to get to his spots. Whether that be on the wing, in the post, and I thought he was very good in pick and rolls. When D'Angelo was the initiator of the offense I felt like things ran much more smoothly and crisply. He often redirected guys and got them in their right positions.

That's not say he doesn't have room to grow. He tends to get too cute in close quarters, dribble too low, and exposing the basketball in the process. He's a decent handler, but not great like Steph. He can improve that because the latter wasn't a great ball handler when he was a rookie. It came with hours and hours of hard work and repetition.


We've already seen videos of D'Angelo working on his game as well as working out and trying to get stronger. That's one sign of a superstar in the making. As I mentioned he's clearly a student of the game. That's another big sign. The thing that really sold me were two specific games. At Minnesota and Vs Brooklyn. Really took over down the stretch of both games and to a certain extent that wild near comeback win against the Kings. You could just see a certain look in his eyes. He was not afraid of the moment. He wanted the moment, he wanted the ball in his hands and he made huge plays. Some people thought he was being over cocky when he said "y'all ain't seen nothing yet", but really it goes right along with what I'm talking about.

The kid knows he's good, but he wants to be great and confidence is a big factor in that. Believing in your abilities, but more importantly believing that nobody can stop you when you're on your A game. D'Angelo has that belief in himself. He's willing to be that guy to either make that shot or miss it and he also clearly showed he can take over a game and carry the team. I just think the kid has the whole package. We know he can shoot, he knows how to navigate and attack on screen and rolls, we saw his postgame really showcased later in the season, defensively he still isn't good, but he has gotten better, he still does tend to get blocked a lot at the basket so he's gonna need more of a variety of shots around the hoop, and also when that strength comes being able to take contact and draw more fouls, and by working on his handles he'll be able to be able to create space easier next season.

I'm excited for next season because I know D'Angelo and Julius aren't half the players they're gonna be maybe not even a third and yet they both have already shown key elements you see from great players. We're about to add another extremely talented kid as well. If it's Simmons there will need to be an adjustment for both as they both like the ball in their hands although D'Angelo obviously had to play without quite a lot last season, but I have faith they'll be able to make that adjustment. These are two young guys who've played together so there is a familiarity. If it's Ingram then you have a legit floor spacer so teams can't trap and ice D'Angelo as aggressively as they did a season ago. Then of course on the other end we can switch at all five spots if we trot out a lineup of D'Angelo, JC, Julius, Nance Jr, and of course Ingram as opposed to being left with someone like Hibbert on a guard like last season. Ingram is also a great fit for Luke's offense. He can play the role of Klay and have our own version of Steph/Klay. Either way we're gonna be so exciting to watch next year even if we only win 25-30 games.

 

He cursed KD the season he won MVP & it all went downhill from there with injuries...do not mess with the curse man...