The Dallas Mavericks desperately needed someone to keep them afloat at the point guard position until Kyrie Irving returns from his torn ACL. In their moment of weakness, they turned to D'Angelo Russell.
There are certainly far worse options the Mavericks could have ended up with. Russell may even prove capable of minimizing the damage until a healthy Irving transforms the team into something resembling a Western Conference dark-horse contender.
However, Mavericks fans talking themselves into the incredible depth they will have at that spot once the NBA Playoffs come around are losing the plot. Simply put, that is just not who Russell is at that point of the season.
Fans in Dallas will quickly learn what everyone in Los Angeles already knows. Much like the clock striking 12 for Cinderella, once the calendar hits April, the veteran guard will quickly be participating in a disappearing act for the postseason.
D'Angelo Russell's playoff struggles are inevitable for the Mavericks
Russell has never been a strong playoff performer. During the four seasons that his teams have managed to make it to the postseason, the former All-Star averaged 14.2 points, 4.8 assists, and 1.0 steal per game.
At an initial glance, those numbers look passable in general. The Mavericks would certainly love to get that type of production off the bench, right? Well, there's a couple of problems with that thought.
For starters, Russell has significantly underperformed his role in each of those appearances. His postseason debut was as a star for the Brooklyn Nets. Russell only averaged 19.4 points on 35.9 percent shooting from the field.
A quick six-game outing with the Minnesota Timberwolves in 2022 told a similar story. The expectations on Russell were not nearly as high as they were in Brooklyn. Still, Russell underdelivered with only 12.0 points per game, shooting 33.3 percent from the field.
For those paying close attention, a pattern may be starting to emerge in another facet. That would be his efficiency, the second problem alluded to above.
Russell's best postseason run, in that regard, came with the Lakers in 2023. The starting guard shot 42.6 that year. However, that came with 13.3 points per game when Los Angeles really needed him to step up as a third option behind LeBron James and Anthony Davis.
More notably, Russell delivered an absolute dud in the Western Conference Finals against the Denver Nuggets. 6.3 points per game on 32.3 percent shooting from the field was all the Lakers could rely upon from him in the disappointing sweep against the eventual champions.
Russell may be sufficient enough to help the Mavericks secure a playoff spot in 2025-26. However, a brutal playoff meltdown following is the safe bet. After his eventual departure, the outspoken guard may even take a shot at the franchise. Lakers fans will continue to laugh at the demise.