NBA scouts eagerly await D'Angelo Russell's decision

With the deadline to declare for the 2015 NBA draft less than two weeks away, more and more of the top prospects are announcing their intention to enter the draft.

In the past few days, Duke's Tyus Jones, N.C. State's Trevory Lacey, and Kristaps Porzingis, a Latvian big man playing in Spain, have all announced their intentions to declare for the draft. They join other top prospects such as Karl-Anthony Towns, Jahlil Okafor, Justise Winslow, among others.

While many of the top names have already declared, there are still a few interesting decisions that prospects have yet to make.

D'Angelo Russell, PG/SG, Ohio State, Freshman

Russell has been piling up the awards: from AP All-American to Big Ten 1st Team and Freshman of the Year. Russell's exemplary freshman season was one of the bigger surprises of the college basketball season.

That season, which saw the sweet shooting lefty average 19.3 points, 5.7 rebounds, and 5.0 assists per game, has vaulted Russell up draft boards around the league. A consensus top-5 pick, Russell is currently third on our latest mock draft.

So what's the hold-up? A report earlier in the week said that Russell would declare for the draft, but that he was still trying to decide on which agency to sign with. Russell later refuted the report, saying he had yet to make up his mind.

More than any player on this list, Russell declaring for the draft seems like an eventual certainty. Returning for another season wouldn't do much to help his draft stock, and he has such an advanced skill level that he should be able to get minutes early in his NBA career, despite just turning 19 years old in February.

Christian Wood, PF, UNLV, Sophomore

Wood was as improved as any player in college basketball this past season. His averages of 15.7 points, 10.0 rebounds, and 2.7 blocks per game – up from 4.5 points and 3.2 rebounds last season – were impressive, but even more impressive was how much more efficient he was. Wood, who shot 41% from the field in his limited role as a freshman, saw that jump to just under 50% as a sophomore.

Wood, who settled for outside jump shots too much during his freshman season, instead used that jump shot to set-up a very effective dribble-drive game, where his athleticism really shined. That combination of size, athleticism, and perimeter shooting, combined with good rebounding and shot blocking instincts, creates a pretty attractive combination.

Should Wood capitalize on the improvement he showed during his sophomore season and jump into the NBA? Despite his clear talent, decision makers still have some reservations.

The first concern is his size. He needs to add considerable strength to withstand the physical nature of the NBA. Another year of college could help in that regard.

There's also the concern over consistency. While Wood was a more consistent player in the second half of the season for UNLV, having scored in double figures in his last 15 games, his style and shot selection, can still lead to some up and down play. The strides Wood made this season in that regard were considerable, but with another year of seasoning at the collegiate level that may be a question he could answer once and for all by returning for his junior season.

In the end, Wood seems like the type of prospect that would best be served by waiting until the April 26th deadline to declare. Projected as a mid-to-late first round pick (USA Today Sports currently has him at 22nd), but with lottery talent, Wood will likely wait as long as possible to make as informed of a decision as he possibly can.

Kris Dunn, PG, Providence, Sophomore

After multiple shoulder injuries derailed Dunn's early career at Providence, he returned in a big way during his redshirt sophomore season.

Dunn led Providence to just their second NCAA Tournament appearance in the past 10 years, posting averages of 15.6 points, 5.5 rebounds, and 7.5 assists per game for the Friars. Dunn was one of only three players to average at least 15 points and seven assists per game this season, joined by Oakland's Kahlil Felder and Northwestern State's Jalan West.

Dunn certainly has areas where he could improve his game, highlighted by his 4.2 turnovers per game, the highest total in college basketball this season. His outside shot was also very streaky, and improving upon either of these two weakness would certainly cement his draft stock next season.

Still, for a 21 year old sophomore who has struggled so much with injuries, turning down what would likely be a mid-first round selection could be a risky decision.