The Wolves came close to creating the feat against the Grizzlies in the first round of the Playoffs but they were weighed down by their tendency to accumulate waste at the wrong time. And the one who perhaps best symbolizes this today is the leader D’Angelo Russell, author of a disgusting Game 6 like his series.
We are in the fourth quarter of the sixth meeting between the Wolves and the Grizzlies. There are just under eight minutes to play and D’Angelo Russell comes on to take the place of Jordan McLaughlin, excellent off the bench last night. The score at that time? 92-89 for Wolves. The sequel, she stings for DLo. A minute after his entry, he lost a first ball on a penetration against Tyus Jones. Three possessions later, D’Angelo tries a super complicated pass to Karl-Anthony Towns, pass intercepted by Desmond Bane. The Grizzlies are tied on a 3-pointer and coach Chris Finch immediately comes out DLo. But the momentum is definitely in favor of Memphis, who will finish the job next.
This double streak is likely to run through Russell’s mind for a long time this summer. The whole of his series even, DLo frankly passing through by offering very weak stats of 12 points and 6.7 assists at 33.3% success in shooting (38.7% of the parking lot) and 75% in throws- frank. For a guy paid more than 31 million dollars a season, we have to admit that it’s quite dramatic. The only real “performance” on his part that can be highlighted is that of Game 3 (22 points, 5 rebounds, 8 assists) and even there he completely sank with his friends (0 point in the last quarter lost 37-12) when he is supposed to know how to stop the bleeding from the height of his 26 years. DLo did not have ice in his veins on this first round of the 2022 Playoffs, he was rather frozen. And if the Wolves lost this confrontation on many aspects, perhaps they could have created the upset with a DLo evolving at least at its regular season level (18 points, 7 assists this year), season during which Russell still contributed to Wolves’ positive record.
D’Angelo Russell on his streak against the Grizzlies (6 games):
12 points
6,7 passes
1,5 interception
2.8 balls lost
33% shooting
38% at three points
49% in throws— TrashTalk (@TrashTalk_fr) April 30, 2022
The worst being obviously D’Angelo Russell who remained well hidden behind his softness in this game 6, as since the beginning of the series. Such a weak match at such an important moment for his team… D-Lo will have to question himself after this 1st round.
— Alex TrashTalk & TBNL (@ABallNeverLies) April 30, 2022
Will the last image of D’Angelo Russell in the Wolves tunic be the one where he watches the end of Game 6 from the bench? Will DLo’s last game with Minnesota be the one in which he dragged down his team while his replacement did absolutely everything right? Is his trio with franchise stalwarts Karl-Anthony Towns and Anthony Edwards on the way out? We can legitimately ask ourselves these kinds of questions today after the fiasco of this first round, and especially the contractual situation of D’Angelo. As a reminder, Russell is eligible for a contract extension this summer and will be a free agent after the 2022-23 season, the last of his current deal. Spoiler-wise, Wolves clearly aren’t going to be rushing to try and extend him unless DLo accepts a pretty drastic pay cut. On the contrary, we should rather expect trade rumors on the Minnesota side in the coming months or during the first part of the 2022-23 season. D’Angelo Russell knows that pretty well since he has never really managed to find the stability in his career that an NBA player is looking for. His debut at the Lakers? Very complicated, so much so that Magic Johnson released him after only two years when we are talking about the number 2 of the 2015 Draft. At the Nets? A beautiful resurrection but which did not last, Kyrie Irving and Kevin Durant taking his place in Brooklyn in 2019. At the Warriors then? Only half a season and then gone, DLo being transferred to Wolves in February 2020 against Andrew Wiggins and a first round draft in what remains as the “best trade the Dubs could have made” according to their owner. It’s 2022 now, and who knows what the future holds for D’Angelo Russell. What we do know, however, is that he could not have finished his season in a worse way.
“I don’t really like talking about it. Often it comes back to haunt you. I couldn’t do no more to show my worth [lol, ndlr.], or the contract I’m looking for or that sort of thing. I prefer not to entertain myself with it for now. »
– D’Angelo Russell, on a potential extension at Wolves
With the rise of Anthony Edwards and the galleys of D’Angelo Russell at the worst time, the latter is clearly not in the odor of holiness at Wolves. We know his friendship with Karl-Anthony Towns but we imagine that the leaders of Minnesota are asking a lot of questions about their leader. Will they keep believing in him and hope the KAT-Ant-DLo trio grows together enough to make Minny a dangerous team in the West? Or will they decide at some point to remove Russell from the equation?
Source statement: end of season interview (Minnesota Timberwolves)
