Among all the free agent targets that are bound to hit the open market this summer, the Brooklyn Nets rising star point guard could be one of the more sought after for any team with this positional need. This Nets rising star is the 23-year-old former Ohio State Buckeyes standout D’Angelo Russell.
As a restricted free agent this off-season, Russell is likely going to be looking to get himself max contract money. He is currently still on his rookie earning scale after he was drafted by the Los Angeles Lakers in the 2015 NBA Draft. In all likelihood, the Nets will be trying to re-sign Russell this summer. But, other teams will have the chance to pursue him in free agency.
It was hard for any NBA fan to imagine that Russell would find a breakthrough this quickly, especially with a franchise that was void of talent in recent years like the Nets. Nevertheless, Russell averages 20.9 points per game, 7.0 assists, and 3.7 rebounds. He’s also shooting 36.2 percent from three-point range.
NBC Sports did a piece back at the end of January in regard to the point guard search for the Chicago Bulls and how this franchise needs to find “it’s D’Angelo Russell” to help this rebuild along. What better way for the Bulls to pull something like that off than to land Russell in the first place. The potential risk with Russell just having one breakthrough year and then returning back down to earth with the Bulls would be the huge risk in pursuing him.