Coming out of Long Beach State as a second-round guy, Bryon Russell was little more than a defensive prospect from a mid-major school. After a bumpy start, however, Russell developed into one of the Association’s OG 3-and-D specialists and a true weapon on both sides of the ball.
After a solid rookie season, he struggled to get minutes in years two and three. But his run during the 1996 NBA Playoffs helped Russell propel himself into a spot as an integral piece of a legit championship contender.
He went on to start 366 games for the Jazz over the course of nine seasons, averaging 9.4 points, nearly four rebounds, and 1.2 steals per contest. He also knocked down 37 percent of his triples.
All the while, he earned a reputation for playing lock-down defense on some of the game’s best scorers. Unfortunately, he’s better remembered for getting torched (shoved?) by His Airness than any of the good things he did for the Jazz:
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