D'Angelo Russell Discussion: Adopting A Professional Attitude

I know, and that's the frightening part. He's shown glimpses of good handles but they are few and far between. I think working on his right hand is a necessity. Still even though it was against a guy who may not even play in the league, I liked his take to the basket below.

 

He's definitely got his handles in control, he's got it on a string. It's actually what allows him to go around defenders despite not having that quick first step. I also like his control knowing where the defender is and protecting his dribble and not turning the ball over in that sense. Spacing, movement, and chemistry will definitely make him look better.

Right now, all he's worried about is learning the offense, as he should be. I don't think we've even seen him turn it on yet. It's only Summer League, I doubt he'll want to go all out and get injured or something.

 

So.... elite passing/vision, great poise, great handles, great rebouding, good shooting (should come along), solid defense.... sounds like ingredients for a potential star.

 

I think hes just thinking too much. Hes trying to learn super fast while playing the game. I suspect we will see a much better russell
in the preseason. That being said, I still think he should be the backup pg until hes totally ready.

 

By no means is he a poor ball handler. It's the fact that he can't carve into the defense like he did in college. Part of having great handles is not just beating your man of the dribble, but having a counter move or another move that busts the help defense. He hasn't shown that 2nd part. In fact when the help(ers) come, he typically turns it over or tries to make a bailout pass. Luckily his bailouts are still great passes.

I absolutely agree he hasn't turned it on. He's being a good student and listening to what the coaches want from him.

 

He gets trapped and can't counter because the defense is sagging on him and there's no one cutting for him to find. The few times people made a cut (like that nice bounce pass) or rolled to the basket, he found them. When JC, Bari and that other PG were hitting outside shots, the defense opened up a little bit, Randle and him were able to walk into the paint for layups.

 

I was 19 once and I worked

his build looks similar to Kent bazemore to me.

 

I agree with that. But I also think half of it is on him. He can't be predictable and look to pass every time. That's where practicing a euro-step, hesitations, perfecting a floater, and working on other dribbling moves will help him incredibly.

It's not like the D collapses 3 guys on him every time. I think if he worked on some of those things he'd have a counter move if no one was cutting. Or a jump shot a la CP2.

 

Yeah, his role models to become great should be Curry and Nash in handling, Harden in shooting and drawing fouls off the shoot (though he got live instructions from the master Bryant ) and passing in Nash and Paul.

 

I am more disappointed with his shot so far. Don't watch as much college, but during the tournament one of my friends who is a Knick fan was boasting Russell and how they want him. It was the game where he shot badly and they lost. In the summer league it is much of the same so far.

 

It's summer league, these guys DR is playing with do not know where the ball is going to be consequently DR is second guessing himself. No better way to take a true passer out of his game is give him a bunch of guys that don't know his spots and reads. Take that away and it's just going to mess with your confidence and the rest of your game.

 

Arizona game, and yes, that game concerned me greatly when we were having pre-draft debates.

I can still sell myself on the idea that he has all the tools to be a star, but I would like to see a little more on-court support in the form of tangible results. I don't buy at all that most of the TOs are about unfamiliarity and some sort of shock factor due to his passing brilliance. there could be some of that, but there's a lot more that's the result of adjusting to being less athletic than many of your competitors.

and you're right about the shot: that's got to be there before his passing will matter. he's not a Jason kidd or even a ricky Rubio type passer, imo. but he does have good vision and the ability to deliver on time and in place. but the angles won't exist for him unless he's a knock-down shooter. his form doesn't look bad, and he's had some positive results in the past, so I'm optimistic on that front. to be a superstar, he'll have to become a finisher at the bucket...that one breeds less optimism for me.

 

Russell's handles are fine. His court vision is pretty evident and he's made some nice passes on a number of occasions. His shots aren't falling, but the majority of them appear to be short. Needs to add strength and adjust to the NBA three point line. He could also lay off some of the step back shots. His decision making needs work and that will take time but he made better decisions yesterday overall.

I've seen multiple stats on a couple of boards that highlight just how much better he plays when we scrap the Princeton and run more pick and roll so that's not something people are just making up. It also goes along with what he displayed at Ohio State as they ran pick and roll quite a bit. So there is absolutely an adjustment being made while learning a new offense.

 

Getting to the rim in traffic has been where a lot of the turnovers are happening.

He's 19, he will need a lot of time to become a "superstar" even if it's possible. I think he's got a good to very good skill set and is fundamentally way ahead of Randle for example. On the downside he's playing the toughest position to translate in the NBA. Mental toughness will be as important as skills if he's truly going to be thrown out there to start and play 32+ minutes a game.

 

Agree wholeheartedly on the first part of your statement. You don't get handfuls of TO's for 3 games straight by your teammates not being ready. Part of it is the athleticism but I think he is just indecisive when he gets in the paint.

It looks as if he attacks with a specific plan to get a certain guy open and if that option is cut off he doesn't really have a counter. Maybe he's reacting to the defense a little too much. I wouldn't mind him taking what little the defense gives him, if that means settling for mid-range jumpers or attacking the basket and throwing up a gimme layup. We watched Randle do that for the first three games. Russell seems to be at least a decent finisher so I wouldn't mind him being selfish.

 

Is this real? Has any other Rook from this year's draft gotten a shoe deal or the like?

 

Smart choice.