D’Angelo Russell is headed back to Brooklyn, as the Lakers traded him and Maxwell Lewis to the Nets in a deal that sees Dorian Finney-Smith and Shake Milton join the Lakers. Russell’s former Timberwolves teammate, Patrick Beverley, shared high hopes for him and the Nets on X. However, Beverley doesn’t have the same optimism for his former team, the Lakers, and their new players – Finney-Smith and Milton.
[D’Angelo Russell] to Nets is good for him and the team. Nets will be able to compete still, and he gets to hoop. Finney-Smith to Lakers, [I don’t know] about that though.”
Russell is in the final year of his contract and currently makes $18.7 million. His joining the Nets allows him to play on a team that isn’t looking to compete, thus giving him the chance to play a relaxed brand of basketball. At just 28 years old, Russell is still very young and will want to use his time with the Nets to earn himself a new contract next year.
Russell will also be excited by the fact that he had the best individual run of his career on the Nets, where he became an All-Star for the first time in his career, putting up 21.1 points, 7.0 assists 3.9 rebounds, 1.2 steals, and 0.2 blocks while shooting 43.4% from the field, 36.9% from the three-point line, and 78.0% from the free-throw line.
He will hope that there is still some magic left in the Nets jersey for him and that he can find success with them as an individual. Russell is reportedly excited to be off the Lakers, and looking forward to a new beginning.
He desperately needs the magic, as he is currently averaging 12.4 points, 4.7 assists, 2.8 rebounds, 0.8 steals, and 0.1 blocks per game while shooting 41.5% from the field, 33.3% from deep, and 84.9% from the free-throw line. Compared to his All-Star numbers, Russell has fallen off a pretty steep cliff.
This trade marks the latest point in the wild journey of Russell’s career. He has been traded from the Lakers to the Nets twice in his career. Not many players can say they have been traded from one specific team to another more than once. But Russell has made history in the most unique way possible.
On the other end of this deal, it is easy to see that Dorian Finney-Smith’s arrival with the Lakers convinced Beverley. Finney-Smith is one of the better 3-and-D players in the NBA, as his strong frame and strong shooting from range make him a valuable asset in the modern NBA.
For the season, Finney Smith has put up strong numbers – 10.4 points, 4.6 rebounds, 1.6 assists, 1.6 steals, and 0.9 blocks, while shooting 45.9% from the field, 43.5% from deep (a career-high), and 62.5% from the free-throw line. He plugs in the gap exactly how the Lakers need.
Even if Beverley or anyone else seems unsure about Finney-Smith, we will have to wait and see how things play out on the court. But if he lives up to the expectations, and continues playing like he has this season, the Lakers will be thrilled about this trade.
Thank you for being a valued reader of Fadeaway World. If you liked this article, please consider following us on Google News. We really appreciate your support.
