Business side of NBA hits Russell between the eyes
LAS VEGAS — D’Angelo Russell arrived Monday night at Thomas & Mack Center looking the part of a dutiful new employee. On hand to watch some of his Golden State teammates in summer league, Russell wore a gray Warriors polo and navy sweatpants, with a team-issued sweatshirt tied around his waist.
Donning such a wardrobe might have seemed beyond comprehension to Russell just a couple of months ago. Fresh off an All-Star season in which he averaged 21.1 points and led the Brooklyn Nets to their first playoff appearance in four years, the 6-5 point guard seemed poised to settle in as a long-term face of the franchise.
But when news surfaced in recent weeks that Kyrie Irving intended to sign with Brooklyn and could bring Kevin Durant with him, Russell, 23, knew he could be on the move. A number of teams were interested in signing the restricted free agent, with the Minnesota Timberwolves the reported front-runner.
One possibility Russell’s agent briefed him on was a complex sign-and-trade that would land Durant with his preferred choice of the Nets and Russell with the Warriors. This intrigued Russell, but he didn’t fully believe it until news of the deal broke June 30, just hours after Durant announced his intention to sign with Brooklyn.
“There was a lot of surprises throughout the free agency,” Russell said in his first public comments since joining the Warriors. “I think it’s just one to add to it, honestly.”
In the immediate aftermath of the deal, numerous national analysts criticized the Warriors for panicking after they learned Durant would leave. Aware that Russell was the only elite player it could acquire given its financial constraints, Golden State paid a steep price, trading a future firstround pick to the Nets.
To accommodate Russell’s four-year, $117 maximum contract, the Warriors dealt Andre Iguodala and a lightly protected 2024 first-round pick to the Memphis Grizzlies. Then there was the reality that the sign-and-trade with Brooklyn severely limited Golden State’s already meager spending power.
No team that acquires a player through a sign-and-trade can eclipse a total payroll just shy of $139 million. By the end of the first day of free agency, the Warriors had roughly $10 million to pay six more players. That ended any chance Golden State had of bringing back free agents DeMarcus Cousins, Quinn Cook, Shaun Livingston and Jordan Bell.
The Warriors took such a massive gamble because a 23-year-old All-Star like Russell is a rare asset, especially for a franchise already deep into the luxury tax. In the week-plus since Russell was traded, speculation has rat-a-tat-tatted that Golden State views him as an important trade chip, not a core player.
This could create an awkward dynamic with Russell, who will try to fit into a team next season that he knows he might only be on for only a few months. For his part, he is trying to tune out such possibilities, keeping his focus on what he can control.
“That’s the business of it,” Russell said. “You put yourself in a position to go somewhere for a long period of time, and that might not be the way it is. That’s the business. I’ve come to the realization that I understand that.
“Whatever situation I’m in, I understand the business side of it.”