Warriors: D’Angelo Russell’s fate looming ahead of trade deadline
By Dalton Sell
Golden State Warriors guard D’Angelo Russell finds himself at the center of a number of trade talks around the league and the team will have to decide his fate soon.
As one of the hottest names on the trade market, the Golden State Warriors have a decision to make with star guard D’Angelo Russell.
Though the 23-year-old is having a phenomenal season, the injury-plagued Warriors have gone in a downward spiral. With league-wide interest in the guard, the team may be listening to offers.
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After making his first All-Star appearance last season, Russell elected to join the Warriors in a sign-and-trade with the Brooklyn Nets for Kevin Durant.
The move seemed like a way for Golden State to flip Russell for another top-tier player as the team already has a star point guard in Stephen Curry. However, the team has kept him on the roster up to this point for a variety of reasons.
With Curry having been sidelined most of this season with injury mixed with second fiddle Klay Thompson missing the entire year with a torn ACL, we haven’t seen how well this trio could mesh together.
On paper, they appear fantastic with their individual accolades, but chemistry becomes the most significant question mark. Fit also remains one of the bigger issues presented here, as both Curry and Russell run the floor at the point guard position.
We saw very little of what this duo was capable of before Curry broke his hand on October 30th, having not played a game since. This puts the Warriors in a more challenging spot because there is a lack of complete evidence to evaluate the pairing’s performances together.
Although the Warriors currently at the bottom of the Western Conference at 9-33, Russell has been having a spectacular individual season as the team battles numerous injuries.
Averaging 23.3 points per game — a new career-high — the rising star has been receiving broad interest from opposing teams and for a good reason. If a team is in search of a point guard, it will not get much better than D’Angelo Russell.
With the teams calling, the Warriors have a difficult choice to make within the next few weeks before the February 7th trade deadline regarding their young star.
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They can keep him throughout this year and see how this team can perform fully healthy next season, or they can trade Russell now and prepare for next season with a different star-level player.
Two of the hottest names that have been linked to the Warriors have been Ben Simmons of the Philadelphia 76ers and Karl-Anthony Towns of the Minnesota Timberwolves.
Both proven stars, either of these moves is interesting. Though it is unknown if there have been any official talks, the team has reportedly monitored the availability of individual players like this around the league.
Regardless, a trade involving Russell likely only occurs if a cornerstone player such as Towns is engaged in talks. The Timberwolves have reportedly been ”intensifying” their pursuit of the guard recently, but Golden State remains hesitant.
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With that being said, Russell is likely safe for now, but his distant future remains up in the air as a member of the Golden State Warriors.