Of course, he also could have made the far smarter decision not to attack at all.
He literally picked the worst time of year to attack. Frozen ground thawing to mud forcing wheeled vehicles to use hard top. Moving off road means immobilization. Also removes the protection frozen ground provides from landmines. The foliage comes out in a month permitting improved concealment.
The situation is not suitable for a sustained campaign. Ergo he believed an echo chamber delusion of being welcomed as a liberator and occupying Ukraine at the outset.
Starting to believe the Putin medical issue theory. Or he intends to go nuclear. But against fellow slavs? I guess if he’s willing to kill his brothers he’s willing to kill his neighbors. “Surrender or face annihilation”. But he’s not a mongol?