How the Story Started
D'Angelo Russell, born on February 23, 1996, is an American professional basketball player. In Louisville, Kentucky, Russell began his basketball career at a young age, showing immense talent and potential. He was then transferred to Montverde Academy in Montverde, Florida, and helped Montverde win back-to-back High School National Tournament championships playing alongside Ben Simmons. He later played in the McDonald's All-American Game and Jordan Brand Classic. On June 7, 2013, Russell committed to Ohio State Buckeyes and started his college season. In 35 games for Ohio State in 2014-2015, Russell averaged 19.3 points, 5.7 rebounds, 5.0 assists and 1.6 steals in 33.9 minutes per game. On April 22, 2015, Russell declared for the NBA draft, forgoing his final three years of college eligibility.
In the 2015 NBA Draft, D'Angelo Russell was selected as the 2nd overall pick by the Los Angeles Lakers. There, D'Angelo Russell’s professional basketball career began.
Loading to Grow
As a basketball player, D'Angelo Russell is known for his smooth ball-handling, scoring versatility, and ability to create shots for himself and his teammates. His determination to win is rooted deeply in his nickname, Dlo, or @Dloading on social media platforms. During an interview in 2015, D'Angelo Russell explained his nickname, emphasizing on the “loading” part:
"I'm loading to success. Like, my dreams are right around the corner. You set goals for yourself, and once you reach that dream or that goal, you set a new goal, and you'll forever be loading..."
D'Angelo Russell's standout performances earned him a spot on the NBA All-Rookie Second Team. After two seasons with the Lakers, Russell was traded to the Brooklyn Nets in 2017. In Brooklyn, he continued to grow, becoming a leader for the team. In the 2018-2019 season, Russell helped the Nets finish the regular season as the sixth seed in the Eastern Conference with a 42-40 record. On February 1, 2019, D'Angelo Russell received his first All-Star selection as a replacement for the injured All-Star Victor Oladipo in the 2019 game. Same year, Russell signed with the leading sporting goods brand, Way of Wade, and started his signature athlete journey on sneakers and performance.
Dloading & Way of Wade
Played one year for Golden State Warriors and three years for Minnesota Timberwolves, D'Angelo Russell returned to Los Angeles Lakers in 2023. Going through ups and downs, Russell did a great job keeping himself balanced, and reached 10,000 career points in 2024. “Fake progressive and woke. I started saying less.” He said so and shattered doubts with actions, making his own way.
To memorize D'Angelo Russell’s hard work, determination, breakthroughs, and records, Way of Wade released many colorways in different series, and the most well-known one is “Ice Blood”. It comes from D'Angelo Russell’s “Ice in My Veins” celebration, which he explained in an interview with Lakers Nation:
“It’s something my dad said growing up. He always said you have to be prepared for big moments, you gotta have ice in your veins. You have to have no feelings. You have to go out there and play your hardest and do what you do. That was the celebration what I performed well and knowing he prepared me mentally.”
Series which include this “Ice Blood” colorway now are Way of Wade 10, Wade All City 10 V2, Wade All City 11, and Wade All City 11 V2.
Another colorway designed for D'Angelo Russell is “City of Angels”. This yellow-and-purple Wade All City 12 “City of Angels” features in Los Angeles Lakers team color, and accompanied D'Angelo Russell through his hardest time in the last a few months. With superior responsiveness and propulsion for crossing over provided by Wade All City 12 “City of Angels”, D'Angelo Russell found himself back, and embarked on a new stage as a 3 point shooter, reaching his first 10,000 career points this month.
The story between Dlo and Way of Wade is still going on. Shortly, Way of Wade will release a new colorway of the Wade All City 12 series- a Dlo PE colorway designed in white and decorated with yellow and purple elements. “Say less”, let’s just wait for its arrival on wayofwade.com.
