D’Angelo Russell reflected on the 2018-2019 season with the Nets during an episode of his podcast, The Backyard Podcast. It seems D’Lo manifested the return of his “golden year,” as just a few days later, he was traded back to the Brooklyn Nets.
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Before Austin Reaves joined in on the episode, Russell had an in-depth discussion with popular content creator and photographer Logan Linkmeyer. At one point during their 48-minute conversation, the two individuals began speaking about their “golden year” – the breakout year in their respective careers.
At this point, Russell shed light on his memorable 2018-2019 season – a first All-Star nod and a max contract in the subsequent summer.
“When it was 2018-2019, that was my golden year. I remember I turned 23, birthday is February 23rd and I was an All-Star. All I was going into it like ‘this is my gold year, this has got to be good’. I signed my max contract – I was like dang that really hit,” Russell said.
The 6ft 3″ guard achieved career-highs across all major stats that season, averaging 21.1 points, 7 assists, and 3.9 rebounds per game on 43.4% shooting from the field. As the leader of an energetic squad, he was largely responsible for the team’s advance to the playoffs after a three-year absence.
However, Russell struggled to remain consistent in the following years, going to the Warriors, the Timberwolves, and then the Lakers. Now, with his return to Brooklyn, fans are hopeful he can rediscover the level of performance that once made him an All-Star.
Russell was impressive in his second stint debut with the Nets
D’Angelo Russell was a pivotal piece in Rob Pelinka’s trade deal. By packaging Russell with Maxwell Lewis and three second-round picks, the Lakers secured Dorian Finney-Smith and Shake Milton.
Upon joining the Nets, Russell didn’t immediately join the starting lineup. Instead, he came off the bench as a reserve guard for Ben Simmons and Keon Johnson.
In the Nets’ 113-130 loss, the veteran guard displayed flashes of his former All-Star form. Over 26 minutes on the court, the 28-year-old tallied 22 points and 8 assists, shooting an impressive 69.2% from the field.
Fans were glad to see D’Lo performing at a high level once again, and would like to see him put up these kind of performances consistently.
