I can call it now.
D'Angelo Russell will be invited to the NBA All-Star Game that will be held in Charlotte, North Carolina, on Feb. 17.
The unfortunate leg injury on Wednesday night to Indiana guard Victor Oladipo, another horrific blight on a league that can't seem to keep its most exquisite attractions healthy for full seasons, likely clinched it for the Nets point guard.
But Russell, 22, deserved to go anyway. He should be Brooklyn's first All-Star Game participant since Joe Johnson in 2014.
The "DLo" All-Star campaign commenced a bit prematurely, in my opinion, but there's now enough of a sample size to make a real case. With his 25-point, 10-assist, seven-rebound performance in a 114-110 victory over Orlando on Wednesday at Barclays Center, Russell boosted his season numbers to 19.3/6.5/3.8. He sports a field goal percentage of 43.8, including 37.9 percent from 3-point range.
Those raw numbers and shooting efficiencies are improvements on Russell's previous three years in the NBA, but what's really separated this season has been that the contributions have been instrumental to his team winning games. This is a far cry from his prior "good stats on bad teams" days.
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The Nets are a surprising 26-23, good for sixth place in the Eastern Conference. They have won 18 of their last 23 games. In this stretch, Russell's numbers stand out further -- 20.9/7.4/3.7 on 47 percent shooting from the floor and 40 percent from 3-point distances. He was so dominant last week (averaging 28.0 points, 7.0 assists and 3.3 rebounds while shooting 53.2 percent from the floor and 53.1 percent on 3s) that he was named Player of The Week in the East.
Even more impressive has been Russell's consistency. Whereas he used to often alternate between sublime games and stinkers, he's had only one off night (in Boston) in the last month.
The question, then, was whether Russell's résumé was solid enough to earn the nod when the full roster is selected Jan. 31.
Kyrie Irving (Celtics), Kemba Walker (Hornets), Bradley Beal (Wizards) and Oladipo will be All-Star locks in the East's backcourt. Fans stuffed the ballot box for Miami legend Dwyane Wade, but that could be overridden by the votes from players and the media, who each contribute 25 percent of the final tally.
There are some who believe that the remaining roster composition, including injury replacements, should give preferences to those on the most elite teams. However, I would consider it a travesty if, as ESPN's Zach Lowe opined, slots were saved for players such as Toronto's Kyle Lowry or Milwaukee's Eric Bledsoe.
Neither player's numbers supersede Russell's. In addition, the fact that Russell has accomplished this much without playing with a megastar like Toronto's Kawhi Leonard or Milwaukee's Giannis Antetokounmpo should work in his favor, not to his detriment.
Look who starts alongside Russell -- a 20-year-old developing center (Jarrett Allen), another 20-year-old forward who played a grand total of 44 minutes in Barcelona last season (Rodions Kurucs) and two guys (wings Joe Harris and Treveon Graham) who rose from G-League obscurity only a few years ago.
Russell is the Nets' star. Sixth man Spencer Dinwiddie is Brooklyn's next-best player, and his minutes have to be staggered so that either he or Russell is always on the floor. They average about 11.4 minutes per game in shared court time, per NBA.com.
"He's playing at an incredibly high level," Orlando coach Steve Clifford said of Russell before Wednesday's game. "He's a terrific, terrific offensive player. You look at his numbers, even for this league, that's a roll."
In last week's comeback victory in Orlando, Russell brutalized the Magic with blistering shooting on pull-up jumpers, making 8-of-12 field goals, including 7-of-10 3-pointers. Clifford called it "Steph Curry stuff."
Russell entered Wednesday's game fifth in the league in pull-up points per game (9.1), per NBA.com. The four names in front of him? James Harden, Walker, Kevin Durant and Damian Lillard. In that elite list, only Durant boasts a better field goal percentage on pull-ups than Russell's 43.9 and only Harden has been more efficient than Russell's 36.9 percent on pull-up 3s.
Orlando emphasized getting into Russell's grill more often Wednesday, but he still found ways to get his points. After going three consecutive games without earning a trip to the free-throw line, Russell's five attempts from the stripe Wednesday were tied for the fourth most he's had all season.
Still, the mark of a truly great player is whether he can make his teammates better. Again, Russell's court vision and passing continue to be underrated. Nets coach Kenny Atkinson marveled how Russell has increased his assist rate to a career-high 23.8 while at the same time decreasing his turnover rate to a career-low 10.4.
"I've said that from the beginning -- that's his elite skill," Atkinson said of Russell's passing. "From the beginning, we said, 'You're a point guard.'We just made it clear. I think he's finding the balance between scoring and finding guys."
Russell will never be a defensive stopper, but he's been better there as well this season. Opponents' shooting percentage when Russell is the closest defender has decreased from 49.9 percent last season to 45.6 in 2018-19, per NBA.com.
In my view, most of the non-Brooklyn media bias against Russell stems from his Lakers days, when he was accused of some immature behavior. When he was 19.
Folks, he's grown up.
Russell has been a diligent worker in the gym and a team leader ever since arriving in Brooklyn prior to last season in the trade that sent center Brook Lopez and a late first-round pick (used on Kyle Kuzma) to Los Angeles.
I was always more concerned that his natural athletic traits (relative lack of speed/quickness) would be what limited Russell's ceiling. However, there's no denying that he's found a way to thrive this season.
You can book that the league will acknowledge it as well.
For a FAN's perspective of the Nets, Devils and Jets, follow Steve on Twitter @SteveLichtenst1.
