Brooklyn Nets: D’Angelo Russell shouldn’t have had to be an All-Star reserve, but a starter
By Alex Jordan
Brooklyn Nets guard D’Angelo Russell has been named an All-Star reserve. He should be a starter, not a reserve, for the All-Star game because he deserves to be a starter.
NBA Commissioner Adam Silver named Brooklyn Nets guard D’Angelo Russell an All-Star reserve on Friday. Russell will replace injured Indiana Pacers guard Victor Oladipo in the 2019 NBA All-Star Game.
This is the first time that Russell, who is in his fourth season, has been named an All-Star.
He is the Nets first All-Star since Joe Johnson was named an All-Star in the 2013-14 season, according to NBA.com, he is the 15th Nets player to earn an All-Star selection and at the age of 22, the second-youngest Nets player to be named an All-Star, behind Buck Williams, per the Nets website.
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The way that Russell has played has put him in the All-Star conversation.
However, it seems that he doesn’t care if he’s an All-Star or not.
Nets coach Kenny Atkinson thinks that Russell has been playing at an All-Star level and that it would be great if he were an All-Star.
Atkinson told Brian Lewis of the New York Post on Thursday:
"“Listen, I’ll repeat what I’ve been saying: He’s been playing at an All-Star level. That being said, I respect the process, respect my colleagues as coaches. But from our perspective he’s been playing at an All-Star level. And we’ll see with the Oladipo situation if he gets a shot. It’d be great.”"
While Russell being an All-Star is good news, the bad news is he isn’t a starter, rather he’s a reserve.
It doesn’t make sense that Russell is a reserve. He deserves to be a starter because he has played so well.
This season, Russell is averaging career-highs of 19.6 points and 6.4 assists along with 3.8 rebounds and 1.17 steals.
He leads the Nets in points per game, assists per game, starts, and three-pointers made (140). D’Angelo ranks ninth in the NBA and third in the Eastern Conference in three-pointers made and ranks 12th in the NBA and fifth in the Eastern Conference in assists.
In January, D’Angelo averaged 23.8 points, 3.9 rebounds, 7.3 assists, and 1.3 steals as he helped the Nets have a 11-4 record for the month of January.
The 11 wins in January set a franchise record for wins in the month of January.
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Russell deserves to be a starter for the All-Star game not a reserve. He isn’t just playing at an All-Star level, he is an All-Star. Let’s hope that he plays in the All-Star game and not get very little playing time because he is an All-Star.