On Friday night, D’Angelo Russell made a valiant return to the lineup for the Warriors. Although he couldn’t help the team overcome a 40-point effort from Andrew Wiggins, despite their 125-119 loss to the Timberwolves, Russell turned in a performance for the ages.
At a point in the season where Golden State is looking for hope for their future, Russell certainly provided it. By the time the night had ended (after an overtime period), Russell had done something that no Warrior has since Ricky Barry in 1978.
According to Justin Kubatko of StatMuse, Russell’s 52 points, nine rebounds and five assists made him the first Warrior to accomplish those numbers in nearly 42 years. That’s impressive considering the fact that Stephen Curry, Klay Thompson and even Kevin Durant all seem capable of accomplishing said numbers.
The only one of the trio to come close was Stephen Curry, who, according to Basketball-Reference, turned in a 54-point, six-rebound, seven-assist effort against the New York Knicks on February 27, 2013.
The Warriors public relations staff also acknowledged Russell’s impressive night, pointing out the fact that he became the 14th player in franchise history to score at least 50 points in a contest.
Obviously, Russell wishes that the scoring outburst would have resulted in a victory, but his strong performance is indicative of the potential that he has. Knowing that Draymond Green, Stephen Curry and Klay Thompson are all waiting in the wings should give Steve Kerr and his staff a certain level of excitement.
In the short term, however, Russell will continue to operate with a green light. With three 40-point efforts as a member of the Brooklyn Nets last season, we already knew that Russell was capable of scoring.
Now, it’s up to him to prove that he can channel his Nets days in a more important way: leading a young team to the next level.
