The moment D'Angelo Russell stepped foot on Ohio State's campus, all the expectations of the 2014-15 season were thrust upon his back. And the freshman from Louisville, KY handled the pressure as well as you could want. You could see the potential right away when -- in his third game as a Buckeye -- he dropped 32 points against Sacred Heart in an early season home game. The total was second most from a Buckeye freshman in school history and the seeds were planted for an amazing run that likely has ended as quickly as it started.
2014-15 Season Stats: 33.9 MPG, 19.3 PPG, 5.0 APG, 5.7 RPG, 44.9% FGP, 41.1 3P%
Preseason Outlook: Russell entered Ohio State with the most potential out of the incoming freshman Thad Matta recruited for the class of 2014. Russell showed poise in high school, winning two consecutive national championships with his prep school Montverde Academy in Florida. He played on large national stages before he even became a Buckeye. Surely a few thousand people going against him in harsh Big Ten environments wouldn't phase him too much. Our own Ian Cuevas explained Russell's high expectations in our player profile series in October:
"There's almost no question that Russell will have a chance to shine with the Buckeyes in 2014. Expected to make the starting lineup (and most likely will be listed as the backup point guard to Shannon Scott) in hopes that he'll be able to translate his success from high school into college, the talented scorer could mean we see a different Ohio State team since the days of the nightmarish offense they've had the past two seasons.
While Russell won't be the only freshman to see the court this season for Ohio State, he will be the one that could, and most likely will, see the most time coming in as one of the five-star prospects in the country."
Russell didn't just crack the starting lineup -- he shined bright for Ohio State. Without Russell's exquisite passing and long range shooting, Ohio State would not have made it past VCU in the NCAA Tournament. One could argue without Russell, the Buckeyes would not have been an NCAA Tournament team in 2014-15.
Best Games: Russell jumped out of the gates early with a 32-point, nine-rebound effort against Sacred Heart, but struggled to find the touch against top competition. There was legitimate concern that Russell might not be able to perform against high-level Division I talent until he settled in and the extra shots during practice paid off against Minnesota on Jan. 6.
Russell came into Williams Arena and lit the roof on fire. He shot 5-of-6 from 3-point range and finished with 27 points and five assists in Ohio State's signature 74-72 overtime victory. It was something of a coming out party for Russell as a scorer and a leader.
The Gophers had to double and triple team Russell to keep the ball out of his hands and it opened up space for his teammates to come up big in the clutch. Marc Loving hit the game winning jumper to put the Buckeyes over the top in the extra session.
Russell's second signature game was also on the road in Evanston, Ill., on Jan. 22 when he dropped 33 points against the Northwestern Wildcats. One of his six dimes in the game was a ridiculous one-handed pass to Sam Thompson for an easy dunk. This game was when people started to realize Russell's passing as his biggest asset.
In the Buckeyes' first trip to Rutgers as Big Ten opponents Feb. 8, Russell dropped his first career triple-double with 23 points, 11 rebounds, and 11 assists. It was possibly the pinnacle of his statistical dominance, but not nearly the most important game he played this season.
Russell's excellence in the NCAA tournament against VCU lifted a fringe tournament team against VCU's havoc defense. The freshman dropped 28 points and pulled in six rebounds against the Rams and salted away the victory with some clutch free-throws. It capped off a tremendous season and cemented an appearance in the Top 5 of the NBA Draft.
Worst Games: If there was one fault with Russell's game, it was that he struggled against size on the perimeter. He sometimes would rush himself and settle for outside jumpers against top tier talent.
In his second game as a Buckeye, he struggled to get free for open attempts. Russell scored just six points in 31 minutes and appeared to be stifled.
Despite frequent cold streaks that would fall upon the Big Ten rookie, Russell scored in double figures in every game following the Marquette matchup until the NCAA Tournament. In Ohio State's season-ending 73-58 loss to Arizona in the round of 32, Russell could not find the range from downtown. He shot 1-of-7 from deep and finished with nine points, despite grabbing seven rebounds and dropping six assists.
It was a poor performance, but you couldn't expect Russell to carry the Buckeyes all season long without a lot of help from the veterans around him.
The Skinny: The Buckeyes would not have been able to get to the round of 32 without D'Angelo Russell, so he gets a break for his lackluster performance against Arizona. Russell's ability to find his teammates kept everyone involved all season, so despite his volume shooting, he did not lose the team. It was amazing to see a group of seniors hand over the keys to the car to a freshman and prosper because of it. We all knew Russell would have to carry the Buckeyes the entire way and his First-Team All-American performance helped Ohio State overachieve.
The Prognosis: It's almost a foregone conclusion that Russell will enter the 2015 NBA Draft in June. With his size and court vision, Russell could play point guard in the NBA and with the league's transformation into a pace-oriented game, you could argue Russell should be the No. 1 overall pick. Wisconsin coach Bo Ryan recently took shots at team's that recruit "one-and-done" players, but Thad Matta is going to continue to recruit top talent to improve his program. It was a one-year NBA tryout for Russell in Columbus, but you can't deny the importance of bringing in the best possible players. When prospects see a guy like Russell go on to be successful in the NBA, it makes others want to join the team. Until the rules change, one-and-dones will continue to be mainstays.