PHILADELPHIA — Sometimes, it takes time. Sometimes it actually takes four years, which, in a sporting world ruled by instant gratification, can seem like a career and a half. Sometimes there is genuine value to waiting, to patience, to letting talent bloom and allowing confidence to grow.
Sometimes, you get D’Angelo Russell, right in front of your eyes.
“We know how good he is,” Nets coach Kenny Atkinson says. “It’s fun to watch right now.”
He was fun to watch Saturday, for sure. It wasn’t that Russell was the only reason the Nets jumped the Sixers in Game 1 of these Eastern Conference quarterfinals.