Golden State Warriors guard D’Angelo Russell knew he wasn’t going to be returning to the Brooklyn Nets this past offseason.
D’Angelo Russell is already on his third NBA team, and he’s only 23 years old. This past summer, he was part of a three-team sign-and-trade with the Brooklyn Nets (his former team), the Minnesota Timberwolves, and the Golden State Warriors (his current team). Russell thus ended up with a new four-year, $117 million deal.
With a talented group of players finding themselves as part of the 2019 free-agent class, the Nets knew they could make a splash. They emerged as a possible destination for point guard Kyrie Irving, a superstar they ended up signing. That being said, leading up to this past free agency period, there was a vibe around Brooklyn that Russell wouldn’t be returning. It was a feeling so strong, that it actually found its way back to D-Lo himself.
“I knew I wasn’t going back to Brooklyn,” Russell told Justin Termine and Greg Anthony of SiriusXM NBA Radio. “… I never knew exactly. I just kinda—you work with these guys every day. You see the same players, you see the same coaching staff, you see the same trainers every day. So when they start to act a little different, you recognize it. … I could feel it.”
Russell was selected to his first NBA All-Star Game in his final year with the Nets (2018-19). He averaged 21.1 points and 7.0 assists through 81 games that season.
Now with the Warriors, Russell’s found himself in a starting role alongside two-time MVP Steph Curry. Guard Klay Thompson is currently nursing a torn ACL and will miss significant time.
