D'Angelo Russell will be a allstar level shooting guard.

[reanimator]

Thing is - he took no time in adopting to the college game as an 18 year old freshman. Not many guards have done what he did from game 1 at that age. As was said, he sees things before others do, and he's got an absurdly quick release on his very accurate jump shot. More importantly than calling him a PG or a SG, he should run his team's offense - like Harden does. Most people call Harden a 2 even though he runs Houston's offense.

Yeah, but he had a size and athleticism advantage over almost everyone he played in college, and the oldest guys he was playing against were 22. The difference in the NBA is gigantic--he'll have a small size/length advantage over some guys on some nights, and most nights he'll be at an athleticism disadvantage. Plus spacing will be tighter, defenses (team and individual) will be much smarter, and he'll have to get off shots even quicker and from weirder angles.

Like I said, I have a lot of faith in him and I think he's got some magic to him. But I can't see how people aren't a little skeptical that he's definitely getting to the promised land, and within just a few years. I'm hoping like hell the Sixers get him but I'm tempering my expectations too.

Nobody's saying he'll be an overnight NBA all-star, and the only sure thing I've seen the last few years was Anthony Davis, but how many guards did what he did at age 18? How many NBA players have as quick a release as he does? Of those, how many pass as well as he does? Of those, how many are as long as he is? How many players are you down to?

We all know his strengths, none of which means anything as far as his finishing ability.

[SparksFly87]

Yeah, but he had a size and athleticism advantage over almost everyone he played in college, and the oldest guys he was playing against were 22. The difference in the NBA is gigantic--he'll have a small size/length advantage over some guys on some nights, and most nights he'll be at an athleticism disadvantage. Plus spacing will be tighter, defenses (team and individual) will be much smarter, and he'll have to get off shots even quicker and from weirder angles.

Like I said, I have a lot of faith in him and I think he's got some magic to him. But I can't see how people aren't a little skeptical that he's definitely getting to the promised land, and within just a few years. I'm hoping like hell the Sixers get him but I'm tempering my expectations too.

Nobody's saying he'll be an overnight NBA all-star, and the only sure thing I've seen the last few years was Anthony Davis, but how many guards did what he did at age 18? How many NBA players have as quick a release as he does? Of those, how many pass as well as he does? Of those, how many are as long as he is? How many players are you down to?

We all know his strengths, none of which means anything as far as his finishing ability.

His shot was so money he really didn't have to ....

[Ruzious]

And with his length, agility, BBIQ, and touch, why would anyone just focus on his finishing ability?

[reanimator]

Because OP claimed it was a strength of his.

It's like saying Manny will develop into a perimeter threat because I'm big on him as a prospect. It is an obvious weakness.

[HotelVitale]

Nobody's saying he'll be an overnight NBA all-star, and the only sure thing I've seen the last few years was Anthony Davis, but how many guards did what he did at age 18? How many NBA players have as quick a release as he does? Of those, how many pass as well as he does? Of those, how many are as long as he is? How many players are you down to?

We all know his strengths, none of which means anything as far as his finishing ability.

His shot was so money he really didn't have to ....

He really wasn't that dominant this year. I'm sure you've seen the stat that he was shot 43% (and 33% from 3) against opponents who were over .500. It's not like he was like Okafor, who had his way almost every night and didn't need to develop anything else to be great at this level. His team lost a lot of games and he wasn't very good in many of those losses. He really could've used some slick finishing this year.

[BNelley24]

Honestly, who gives a crap about Russell's defense when the 76ers will have Noel & Embiid down low.

[ALL HAIL]

The way he seemingly avoids contact going to the rim after making some slick-ass move to akkyde his defender eerily reminds me of Jamal Crawford.

Other than his great rebounding numbers, Russell seems like a player who doesn't like to be touched.

He's a bit soft ... like Jamal Crawford.

[SparksFly87]

Honestly, who gives a crap about Russell's defense when the 76ers will have Noel & Embiid down low.

[SparksFly87]

The way he seemingly avoids contact going to the rim after making some slick-ass move to akkyde his defender eerily reminds me of Jamal Crawford.

Other than his great rebounding numbers, Russell seems like a player who doesn't like to be touched.

He's a bit soft ... like Jamal Crawford.

Russell should have a long productive career than.

[ALL HAIL]

The way he seemingly avoids contact going to the rim after making some slick-ass move to akkyde his defender eerily reminds me of Jamal Crawford.

Other than his great rebounding numbers, Russell seems like a player who doesn't like to be touched.

He's a bit soft ... like Jamal Crawford.

Russell should have a long productive career than.

Agreed.

You just won't hear his name mentioned in the same breath as Curry anymore.

He's a jump shooting Evan Turner -- which ain't half bad.

[Illmatic12]

I actually agree, think he will be an All-Star level guard.

He's probably not going to be a franchise-changer but with his skillset, he is definitely a guy who can put up All- Star 'esque' numbers someday. By that I mean ~18-20ppg/7apg/5rpg, not talking Harden-level #s

Biggest thing for me is his size. Any skilled ballhandler/distributor with his size has a chance to make a good impact (which is why I'm relatively high on Mudiay also). Russell is going to see the floor and make plays, can run the PnR, and with his shooting he'll be able to play off the ball. What he WON'T do is break down defenses with athleticism like a Harden, or play consistently tough D. But that just means he won't be a superstar, not that he can't be a very steady and productive player.

[thamadkant]

He reminds me of a less craftier and lesser IQ Ginobili but stronger.

[903124]

I actually agree, think he will be an All-Star level guard.

He's probably not going to be a franchise-changer but with his skillset, he is definitely a guy who can put up All- Star 'esque' numbers someday. By that I mean ~18-20ppg/7apg/5rpg, not talking Harden-level #s

Biggest thing for me is his size. Any skilled ballhandler/distributor with his size has a chance to make a good impact (which is why I'm relatively high on Mudiay also). Russell is going to see the floor and make plays, can run the PnR, and with his shooting he'll be able to play off the ball. What he WON'T do is break down defenses with athleticism like a Harden, or play consistently tough D. But that just means he won't be a superstar, not that he can't be a very steady and productive player.

I am not a fanboy of athleticism determine whether player will success. For me Curry does not break down defenses with athleticism and not really tough D. I am not really saying Russell will be such level of success but actually Russell is pretty tall for pg and not really very slow-footed as people think. At least I would not say someone WILL not be a superstar and let time speak for itself.

[Teen Girl Squad]

I'm not sure why you are getting defensive about Russell. Everyone agrees that he's a top 3 lock at this point with a good chance of going #2 depending if the Lakers like him or whichever big is there.

[fuzzy_dunlop]

"You just won't hear his name mentioned in the same breath as Curry anymore."

wat why would THAT be the quality that sets him apart from Steph? Curry "doesn't like to be touched" either, it's why he STILL can't draw fouls to save his life.

[cksdayoff]

And with his length, agility, BBIQ, and touch, why would anyone just focus on his finishing ability?

I think in order for him to be a 20+ppg scorer (Sixers drafting him at #3, you would hope he becomes that), he will need to be able to finish around the basket and get to the free throw line.

[SparksFly87]

I actually agree, think he will be an All-Star level guard.

He's probably not going to be a franchise-changer but with his skillset, he is definitely a guy who can put up All- Star 'esque' numbers someday. By that I mean ~18-20ppg/7apg/5rpg, not talking Harden-level #s

Biggest thing for me is his size. Any skilled ballhandler/distributor with his size has a chance to make a good impact (which is why I'm relatively high on Mudiay also). Russell is going to see the floor and make plays, can run the PnR, and with his shooting he'll be able to play off the ball. What he WON'T do is break down defenses with athleticism like a Harden, or play consistently tough D. But that just means he won't be a superstar, not that he can't be a very steady and productive player.

I am not a fanboy of athleticism determine whether player will success. For me Curry does not break down defenses with athleticism and not really tough D. I am not really saying Russell will be such level of success but actually Russell is pretty tall for pg and not really very slow-footed as people think. At least I would not say someone WILL not be a superstar and let time speak for itself.

Curry breaks down defenses because 1. He is the ultimate shooting threat so teams over play him . 2. Warriors have a incredible amount of space to operate in the paint area because of how spread out they are on offense.

[Illmatic12]

I actually agree, think he will be an All-Star level guard.

He's probably not going to be a franchise-changer but with his skillset, he is definitely a guy who can put up All- Star 'esque' numbers someday. By that I mean ~18-20ppg/7apg/5rpg, not talking Harden-level #s

Biggest thing for me is his size. Any skilled ballhandler/distributor with his size has a chance to make a good impact (which is why I'm relatively high on Mudiay also). Russell is going to see the floor and make plays, can run the PnR, and with his shooting he'll be able to play off the ball. What he WON'T do is break down defenses with athleticism like a Harden, or play consistently tough D. But that just means he won't be a superstar, not that he can't be a very steady and productive player.

I am not a fanboy of athleticism determine whether player will success. For me Curry does not break down defenses with athleticism and not really tough D. I am not really saying Russell will be such level of success but actually Russell is pretty tall for pg and not really very slow-footed as people think. At least I would not say someone WILL not be a superstar and let time speak for itself.

You do realize that Steph Curry is probably the greatest shooter to ever play in the league, right?

If his shooting ability was just 'good' and not 'great' ( or even just 'great' and not 'ATG-caliber') he wouldn't be anywhere near what he is today. Curry's otherworldly shooting ability is the difference between an MVP-caliber superstar and a solid consistent All-Star who would put up maybe ~18-20ppg/7apg... which is what I predict for Russell.

[NewWolvesOrder]

So what separates Russell from Nik Stauskas? They have similar skill sets, both are high IQ guys, athletically not much of a difference, Russell looks to have much longer wingspan I suppose. But I didn't watch both of them outside of highlight clips.

[Zombiesonics]

russell had a historic offensive season at osu. its him curry and harden when analyzing usage rates + offensive rating. this isn't your typical sg, he is a dynamic guard that can run a whole offense. What seperates russell from stauskas? passing and ballhandling