Almost Famous, D'Angelo Russell Is Driven to Justify His NBA Draft Hype
NEW YORK — The man who could be Kobe Bryant's next backcourt mate in Los Angeles—or perhaps the savior for struggling Philadelphia—is walking toward the corner of 34th Street and 5th Avenue in New York City, holding a black leather backpack and a takeout bag from Chipotle.
Wearing shredded Levi's blue jean shorts, white Nike sneakers and a backward baseball cap, D'Angelo Russell doesn't have the flash of a future NBA millionaire, but he still commands attention.
Russell is flanked by an eight-person entourage that includes his publicist and two older brothers. Passers-by point and whisper as a reporter, notepad in hand, peppers Russell with questions. A black Yukon SUV from Uber arrives to whisk Russell to an appearance across town, but before the former Ohio State star can slide into the backseat, he's stopped by a pair of girls in their 20s. One of them asks for a photo.
"Don't you want to get in the picture with me?" Russell says.
The girl laughs.
"Actually," she says, "we don't even know who you are."
In some ways, that's been a theme throughout Russell's basketball career. Although he may not be anonymous in basketball circles, he's certainly never received the type of fanfare of 2014 classmates such as Karl-Anthony Towns, Jahlil Okafor and Emmanuel Mudiay.
That's about to change.
Thursday night at Brooklyn's Barclays Center, the guard who was often treated like an afterthought both in high school and college will likely be among the first three players selected in the 2015 NBA draft.
While there is some speculation that the Los Angeles Lakers could select Russell with the second overall pick, most mock drafts predict he will go to the Philadelphia 76ers at No. 3.
"I honestly don't care where I go," Russell said. "Minnesota, L.A., Philly, New York...it doesn't matter. I'm going to be excited.
"I'll adapt to any situation. I've been adapting to different situations my whole life."
What's surprising about Russell isn't that he blossomed into an NBA lottery pick—it's that he did it so quickly.
Russell starred for his prep school (Montverde Academy in Montverde, Florida) but hardly received the same level of buzz as teammates such as Joel Embiid and Ben Simmons. He earned McDonald's All-American honors as a senior, yet the Louisville native didn't receive a scholarship offer from in-state powerhouse Kentucky.
Rivals.com ranked him as the 18th-best recruit in the class of 2014, but he was never mentioned in the same breath as other elite recruits.
Even Russell's father, Antonio, is shocked by his son's rapid ascension, telling Bleacher Report on Tuesday that he expected D'Angelo to be a "two- or three-year guy" at Ohio State.
"I thought the same thing," D'Angelo said. "Early in the season, I'd always tell Coach [Thad] Matta, 'I'm going to be here a while. You've got me.'
"But then all these good things started happening. I started hitting shots and making all of these crazy passes. It got a lot of people's attention, and I started playing with more and more swagger. The NBA thing came up. I couldn't say no."
Indeed, Russell averaged 19.3 points, 5.7 rebounds and 5.0 assists as a freshman at Ohio State. He also shot 41.1 percent from three-point range and displayed uncanny court vision, traits that earned him All-American honors and a "can't-miss" tag among NBA scouts.
Ohio State assistant Jeff Boals said the most impressive thing about Russell was that he never became overwhelmed by the success and the attention it garnered, a display of maturity that's rare for any player, "much less a freshman," Boals said.
Russell is operating with the same mentality entering Thursday's NBA draft, vowing that becoming a pro won't cause him to change a thing about his demeanor, either on the court or off it.
"I'm trying to keep a level head," Russell told Bleacher Report on Tuesday in New York. "I'm trying not to get too nervous about anything because I want to enjoy this experience.
"But once I walk across that stage, I'm sure my emotions will let out."
After only a few weeks at Montverde Academy, D'Angelo Russell had enough.
"This isn't for me," he told his dad. "I'm ready to go home."
Just a few weeks earlier, after his freshman year of high school in Louisville, Russell had packed his bags and headed for Florida and enrolled at the prep school that counts players such as Dakari Johnson and Embiid among its alumni.
Russell and his father had attended a few of the school's practices the previous season and were convinced it was a place he could excel.
"We were confident in what he was bringing to the table," Antonio Russell said. "We thought he'd start [as a sophomore]. Or at the very least be the sixth man."
Once he arrived, though, Russell was sure Montverde coach Kevin Boyle didn't like him. Despite "holding his own" in practice, Russell had Boyle routinely chastising him for a lack of intensity on defense and for not sharing the ball.
But Antonio Russell refused to let his son quit. The way he saw it, this was exactly what he needed.
Back in Louisville, D'Angelo had been the leading scorer for his high school team as a freshman and was already regarded as one of the top players in the state.
From the time he was seven—when he began mimicking the crosscourt bounce passes of AND1 Mixtape star Skip to My Lou—Russell had told everyone he'd play in the NBA someday. More and more, people were telling him a pro career was in his future.
It was flattering.
And dangerous.
"Being the No. 1 kid in Kentucky was a false pretense," Antonio said. "I was worried he'd get caught up in what the news people and sports bloggers were saying, that he'd start thinking, 'I'm a hell of a basketball player.' He needed to experience some adversity."
He certainly received it at Montverde.
"They dogged me that first year," D'Angelo said. "I felt like I didn't belong. I got a reality check and didn't know how to handle it. I thought I was a great player, but I wasn't. Not yet."
With players such as Kasey Hill and Michael Frazier (both University of Florida signees) in the backcourt, there were times when Russell only logged two or three minutes a game as a sophomore. Instead of sulking, Russell embraced the challenge.
"It was the best thing that ever happened to me," he said. "It gave me a hunger I'd never had before, a desire to work on the things I didn't do well. I came back that next year with fire in my veins.
"And I separated myself."
With Russell leading the way, Montverde went a combined 55-2 the next two seasons while winning back-to-back National High School Invitational Championships.
Indiana and Louisville were among the scores of schools that offered scholarships, but Russell committed to Ohio State before his senior season because, he said, the Buckeyes "recruited him the hardest."
Schools such as Kentucky, Duke and Kansas, Russell said, never extended offers, choosing instead to pursue more highly ranked players.
"Some players thrive in the open-style, AAU games—the all-star games," Russell said. "But when it comes to playing in an actual system and having to 'think' the game, you see where some guys separated themselves.
"A lot of the guys that were ranked ahead of me didn't have as much success [in college] because they had to 'think' the game. I was confident that I'd do well."
Russell pauses and smiles.
"But I definitely didn't expect for things to go this good."
The day after D'Angelo Russell's first unofficial scrimmage as a Buckeye, head coach Thad Matta needed just one look at the film to make a bold assertion.
"Guys," Matta told his assistants during a film session, "we're probably not going to have him for more than one year."
A few weeks before the season opener, Ohio State played West Virginia in a scrimmage that was closed to the public.
Known for their physical, pressing style, the Mountaineers threw every type of defense they could at Russell in an effort to stop him. Nothing worked.
"They guarded him for 94 feet," Boals said, "and it didn't matter."
Among college basketball junkies, it didn't take long for the secret to get out about Russell. Along with compiling his gaudy shooting percentages and assists numbers—his 5.0 dimes came despite sharing the backcourt with senior Shannon Scott, who averaged 5.9—Russell accomplished the rare feat of averaging more points (20.3) in Big Ten play than in nonconference play (17.7).
Still, more than anything, Russell became known for the court vision and anticipation skills that led to a flurry of highlight-reel passes. Just like his childhood hero, Skip to My Lou, Russell was racking up footage for his own mixtape (example below includes some NSFW lyrics):
Boals says hours and hours of film study is the main reason Russell is able to "see things before they happen."
"He respects the game," Boals said. "He'd spend as much time in the film room as he would on the court. His favorite player by far is Manu Ginobli, but he watches tapes of older players, too.
"He separates himself that way. The NBA is a thinking game."
Russell agrees but admits his ability to think a play or two ahead is, "God-given, a gift."
In the end, though, he said, his success in college is nothing more than a product of hard work.
Russell said he became such a recognizable face on Ohio State's campus that walking to class often became a chore because of picture and autograph requests. And if he dared go out on the weekends?
"I'd get mobbed," Russell said, adding that he'd never even heard of popular Ohio State eateries such as the Thurman Cafe.
"I really didn't get to experience college," he said. "I enjoyed Ohio State, but I didn't feel like I had a chance to live the college life. When some guys got bored, they went out partying or to the student center. When I got bored, I went to the gym."
It's a habit Russell picked up back at Montverde. Just as he was forced to fight for an opportunity to get on the floor in prep school, Russell found himself grinding to achieve even greater things in college.
"I was hard on myself," Russell said. "What happened at Montverde opened my eyes. You've gotta be gritty and hungry. No one is going to give me opportunities. I've gotta take them. I found an edge for myself, watching film and grinding at night when no one expected it."
That's why Russell doesn't flinch when asked about his declaration that he's the best player in the 2015 NBA draft. It's not a knock on anyone else in the field, he says. It's more about a strong belief in himself that's been enhanced through years of hard work.
"I'm not a guy that's gonna go talk [trash]," he said. "But someone asked me that question and I answered it. I respect my work ethic. I know what I put in. I know the struggle I came from.
"The position I was put in in college to lead a group of guys that needed to be led...you could put all the top guys in this draft in that position, and they wouldn't have had as much success as I had."
Earlier this week, shortly after arriving in New York for the draft, D'Angelo Russell and his older brothers (Antonio Jr. and LaShaun, both 21) went on a late-night stroll through Times Square.
The trio visited the Hershey's store and sampled some chocolate. They stopped in a souvenir shop to search for a late Father's Day gift for their dad. And D'Angelo even chowed down on a chicken kabob from a street vendor.
"People told me to stay away from that stuff," D'Angelo said. "But this is New York. I had to try it."
Clothes, shoes, women, movies. The conversation among brothers went from topic to topic—but it never involved basketball.
"I'm sure that, at some point Thursday, there will be a moment when he says, 'Man, this is real,' " Antonio Jr. said. "But for now he's doing a good job of keeping his emotions in check. He's handling it as well as an 18-, 19- or 20-year-old possibly could. Some of the top players here are a little stiff, acting like this is a 'business trip.' But D'Angelo is enjoying the experience.
"The best characteristic about my brother is that he's always going to be himself."
Russell may be determined not to change, but his life certainly will.
Gone are the days of playing second fiddle to other big-name players, of autograph seekers asking for his signature without knowing his identity. Assuming he lives up to expectations, Russell is on the cusp of becoming a national star.
He'll be living in a new city and operating under a type of spotlight he's never experienced. If Russell is indeed the No. 3 selection as so many pundits predict, he'll earn at least $3.8 million as a rookie and just under $4 million the following season. (Whichever team selects him can give up him to 120 percent of his rookie-scale amount, which would bring his 2015-16 salary closer to $4.6 million if chosen third.)
Yet the only big purchases Russell has planned thus far are dogs (at least one German Shepherd) for him and his brothers, who will move with him to his new city.
"I guess you could say it'll be a gift to myself," said Russell, who was devastated when his blue pit bull, Diamond, ran away in high school.
In some ways, Russell is already experiencing the celebrity treatment in New York. He was given a VIP tour of the Empire State Building on Tuesday and went on a free shopping spree at Foot Locker.
Russell's marketing team also arranged for him to be fitted for custom threads at 3x1 Jeans, a high-end store frequented by LeBron James and C.C. Sabathia, where jeans cost as much as $1,250. That's a far cry from the $20 Levi's he was wearing that afternoon.
"I'd never pay that much for a pair of jeans," Russell said later. "I don't care how much money I make. I can't imagine doing something like that."
Russell has, however, picked out a snazzy suit—he declined to reveal details—for Thursday's draft. As much as anything, he said he's looking forward to sharing the moment with those closest to him. His mother, brothers and two sisters will be there along with aunts and other relatives. He's flying in his four best friends, too.
"Everyone who has impacted my life," Russell said.
No one has had a bigger influence than Russell's father, who was slated to arrive from Louisville on Tuesday night before rainstorms forced him to rebook his flight.
"I'll swim up to New York if I have to," Antonio said. "His dream is right around the corner. I'm not going to miss it."
What excites Antonio Russell the most, however, isn't the sight of his son walking across the stage to shake the hand of NBA Commissioner Adam Silver after hearing his name called Thursday. It's about all that's in store in the months and years to come.
Antonio notes that D'Angelo's Twitter name is @DLoading.
"He's comparing himself to a computer with the word 'loading,' " Antonio said. "He's never full. Every day he's loading up new challenges, new information that will help him get better.
"That's why I'm so confident in D'Angelo. To him, whatever happens on Thursday night won't mark the end of a journey. It'll be the beginning of one."
Jason King covers college sports for Bleacher Report. You can follow him on Twitter @JasonKingBR.
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