Mavericks will get the full D’Angelo Russell experience this season

At the end of the day, D'Angelo Russell is a slightly above-average starting NBA point guard. But the way he gets to that place is by being incredible half the time, and nearly unplayable the other half. And therein lies the full D'Angelo Russell experience — at the end of the day, it's pretty good. But on those rough days, it can get pretty rough.

And with Kyrie Irving out for most of the season, and the only other real ball-handling options being Dante Exum and a rookie in Cooper Flagg, it's not like Russell can fade into the background on this Mavs team; he will be front and center when the season starts, with real responsibilities as a ball-handler and playmaker for his teammates.

Just like every other fanbase of teams he's played for, Mavs fans will likely have an even relationship with Russell. He's as streaky as they come, and when the 3-point shot is falling, you'll start to wonder why he's only ever made one All-Star team. Then the shot will stop falling and you'll curse your team's front office for signing him in the first place. Then he'll start hitting shots again, and you'll sheepishly apologize for the mean tweets (and you'll hopefully remember that mean tweets are never necessary in the first place).

Mavericks fans will have an uneven relationship with D-Lo

Russell's tenure with the Lakers, where he's spent about five years over two different stints, didn't end in a particularly dazzling manner. He was traded mid-season for Dorian Finney-Smith, who then signed with the Rockets in the offseason. Back on the Nets, Russell had a few good moments, but didn't play well overall. It's hard to really blame him for that — the Nets have no interest in winning, and that's a tough spot for a veteran to be in.

But now Russell is the de facto starting point guard on a team that should at least compete on a nightly basis. It wasn't too long ago that he averaged 18 points and 6 assists per game on over 30 percent shooting from 3-point range.

If he can do that in his first season with the Mavs, that would be swell. And maybe he can! Just don't expect him to get 18 points and 6 assists every night. It'll be closer to 32 points and 10 assists one night, and then 4 points and 2 assists the next. Balance!