After a report surfaced late Sunday night saying D'Angelo Russell was going to declare for the NBA Draft within the next two days, Russell took to his Twitter account to express his feelings.
— D'Angelo Russell (@D_Russ0) April 13, 2015
On Monday night, prior to Ohio State's Scholar-Athlete Dinner at the Ohio Union, Russell confirmed he has yet to make a decision regarding his future.
"It’s funny because nobody knows what I’m doing, I don’t know what I’m doing. If I knew, I would have made a decision by now," Russell said. "I’m really just taking it slow, going at my family’s pace and not anybody else’s pace. The deadline is coming up, I know we’ll know before that, but like I said, I’m just moving at my family’s pace.”
The deadline for underclassmen to declare for the NBA Draft is April 26, which means Russell has a little under two weeks to decide if he wants to enter his name or return to Ohio State for his sophomore season.
Russell is aware of that timeframe and said he plans to sit down this weekend with his family to discuss his future.
“This weekend, I’m sitting down with my family. I honestly haven’t even discussed anything with my dad, with my brothers, anything," Russell said. "We’re starting from scratch and, like I said, I’m taking this weekend to myself and my family and we’re going through that.”
“It’s funny because nobody knows what I’m doing, I don’t know what I’m doing. If I knew, I would have made a decision by now.”– D'Angelo Russell
Russell was a consensus All-American for the Buckeyes this season, leading the team in scoring (19.3 points per game), rebounding (5.7 per game) and was second on the team in assists (5.0 per game). He recently won the Jerry West Award, which is given to the nation's top shooting guard.
Most NBA mock drafts have Russell being selected somewhere in the Top 5, should he decide to enter his name.
“I don’t really get too high with it or too low with it, but seeing the things on Twitter people say, making the stuff up, it’s just funny to me and I laugh at it every day,” Russell said.
Russell said he and Ohio State head coach Thad Matta speak "every once in awhile," but also added the two of them haven't discussed Russell's future much.
"(Matta) is kind of taking it slow also so I appreciate him for that," Russell said.
And although it's a bit surprising Russell hasn't made an announcement regarding his future yet — Ohio State's season ended March 21 — the talented 6-foot-5 guard said he's comfortable taking things slow.
"I didn’t come into college trying to be a one-and-done type guy trying to get in and get out," Russell said. "I was a guy that came in, unpacked my bags and was looking to get comfortable the best way I can. It’s great moving at my own pace.”
