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G D'Angelo Russell (Unanimous 1st Team All-American, All-Star, Los Angeles Lakers)

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This kid is going to drive me absolutely bonkers this season. He reminds me so much of Evan Turner as a freshman -- will WOW! you for awhile -- a play, a handful of plays, maybe even an entire game.....and then will make a number of plays that makes you want to throw things. The talent is obvious, but the consistency is going to be exasperating.

Thinking back on ET's freshman year, it was probably close to halfway through the season before he really became a factor, so he went through these growing pains in the meat of the B1G schedule. Ideally, Russell can get through this transition against the soft non-conference and have hit his stride by the time the B1G schedule rolls around. As frustrated as I was with his play last night, I do believe the team will be better 3 months from now as a result.

(I did think it was interesting that Shannon Scott went to the bench before Russell -- somewhere around the 6-8 minute mark, maybe.)
 
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Bill Lucas said:
I get what you are saying buy Russell is much more skilled with the ball and polished offensively than Turner was a freshman. He just need to stop trying to split double teams with the dribble against smaller guards.
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As last night was my first time seeing him play, I am sure you have seen a lot more of him than I have. Pairing that with the fact that I KNOW you know more about the game than I do, I will definitely defer to your expertise on this. I look forward to seeing better nights from him.
 
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I've said before that I doubt Russell will be a one-and-done player. That is to say, I don't think he's a guy that will be regarded as a high (lottery) pick in the 2015 Draft, but that does not mean Russell would not declare based on his own personal preference to go.

At this point, Russell is a 6'4 combo guard. The NBA does not tend to look as highly at that type of player unless the guy has shown he can be a lead PG-type. Russell could have that ability, but with Shannon Scott on the roster it is doubtful he'll have enough of an opportunity this season to actually show that ability.

With Shannon Scott pulling the strings, Russell needs to focus on being the best scorer he can possibly be right now. His quick-release stroke is a thing of beauty, and that is where his focus should be - keep developing that, along with making the "easy" play rather than the more difficult play. Once that becomes an afterthought, he'll get the chance next season to run the offense and showcase himself as a potential 2016 lottery pick.
 
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Buckeye737 said:
How many players under 6'6" are lottery picks in an average year?
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4/year over the past decade.

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How many of those were PG's (yes, I could look, but figured you already did the research and had the information)? I recall last years draft for example had a lot of bigs and I think the only smaller guys to go in the lottery were PG's. IF Russell can show that he is a viable NBA PG., then his odds of being a lottery pick increase substantially. He is a very skilled and heady ballplayer, but appears maybe to be a bit of a tweener at the NBA level.
 
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Freshman of the Week: D’Angelo Russell, Ohio State, G
  • Averaged 18.0 points, 5.0 rebounds, 5.0 assists and 2.0 steals per game in the Buckeyes’ split against #5/5 Louisville and Colgate
  • Scored 17 points, handed out six assists, pulled down six rebounds and swiped two steals against the Cardinals
  • Scored 19 points, including a trio of three-pointers, dished out four assists, corralled four rebounds and tallied two steals against Colgate, leading Ohio State to the 2014 Buckeye Classic title
  • Earns his first Freshman of the Week honor
- See more at: http://btn.com/2014/12/08/andre-hol...n-weekly-big-ten-honors/#sthash.i9V2CZne.dpuf
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I am now seeing several of the early 2015 NBA Draft "big boards" are coming out - and D'Angelo Russell right now looks to be on the cutoff of the lottery. I would say I'm surprised, but after the way Thad Matta has gone to strictly Russell at the point in big-game situations rather than Shannon Scott, I am not surprised any longer. I think this season will trend toward Russell seeing more and more time at the point because of Scott's inconsistent play against better opponents.

Things seem to be trending in the direction of Russell being a top 10 pick in next year's draft, especially because of an apparent lack of PG prospects.
 
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Bulls-Eye said:
I am now seeing several of the early 2015 NBA Draft "big boards" are coming out - and D'Angelo Russell right now looks to be on the cutoff of the lottery. I would say I'm surprised, but after the way Thad Matta has gone to strictly Russell at the point in big-game situations rather than Shannon Scott, I am not surprised any longer. I think this season will trend toward Russell seeing more and more time at the point because of Scott's inconsistent play against better opponents.

Things seem to be trending in the direction of Russell being a top 10 pick in next year's draft, especially because of an apparent lack of PG prospects.
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I would not mind seeing Russell play more at the PG with Williams playing the #2. I think we are much better offensive team with Williams at the SG.. I guess a lot will depend upon how Shannon plays when he is in the game but Williams is definitely a better shooter. Regarding Russell being a lottery pick, I just did not see it because PG's are usually not taken very high in the draft unless the airplane deposition for quite some time in college and unless they are very very good.. We shall see.
 
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