Brooklyn Nets: 3 reasons why the Nets are finally a .500 team in January

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The Nets really and truly are a team first team. The Nets don’t have a James Harden of Stephen Curry type superstar on their team. That is one of the reasons why it took so long to build.

In today’s NBA, it is not easy to win without a megastar.

However, the team first mantra is finally working. And a big reason for that is because the Nets finally have their guys who are emerging as superstars.

D’Angelo Russell, or as he calls him self on social media (D-Loading), is having an incredible season. He is improving his game in a big way and all his teammates are better because of it.

This season, Russell is one pace to average his career high in points, assists, field goal percentage, and total rebounds per game.

It is not a coincidence it is helping the Nets either.

He is still struggling with consistently in not being able to drop 20 plus points on a regular basis, but the Nets don’t need him to be a prolific scorer, it just helps.

More importantly, Russell’s assists are up and he is becoming a more complete point guard.

Russell leads the Nets in points per game, assists per game, and .1 steals away from leading in that too.

He is the Nets’ best player and Kenny Atkinson has used him perfectly. He can see when Russell is hot and lets him takeover.

When Russell is struggling, Atkinson put him on the bench in favor of someone else.

Point blank, Russell is becoming the point guard the Nets traded for. He is no longer a liability to the team, is staying healthy and playing well.

He leads the Nets, is close to leading the Nets in almost every important offensive category.

Much like his team, Russell is still developing too. So, the fact that he is rolling and having a career year and the Nets are having this magical season speaks for itself.