The Los Angeles Lakers announced that they have acquired Dorian Finney-Smith and Shake Milton from the Brooklyn Nets in a trade involving D’Angelo Russell, Maxwell Lewis and second-round draft compensation.
Finney-Smith is a much-needed 3-and-D wing who is shooting a career-high 43.5% from 3-point range. Overall he is averaging 10.4 points, 4.6 rebounds and 1.6 assists on 45.9% from the field while playing quality defense.
Milton is a veteran guard at 28-years-old who has bounced around a few teams the past couple of seasons. Since signing with Brooklyn this past offseason, his playing time has been limited but he averaged 23.9 minutes in the month of December.
Notably, Milton dropped 16 points and 12 assists on Friday against the San Antonio Spurs. Perhaps, he gets a look as a reserve guard under head coach JJ Redick’s offense now that Russell is no longer in the picture.
Russell suited up in 29 games this season for L.A., notably shifting to a bench role after early season offensive struggles. Through this first-half stretch, the 28-year-old averaged 12.4 points, 2.8 rebounds and 4.7 assists on 41.5% from the field and 33.3% from 3-point range.
This concludes Russell’s second stint with the Lakers. He was acquired back at the 2023 trade deadline centered around Russell Westbrook. That move ultimately propelled the purple and gold to an unlikely Western Conference Finals appearance. Now, he gets to return to Brooklyn where he had his lone All-Star season.
Lewis was a second-round draft pick of the Lakers that general manager Rob Pelinka moved up in the draft to select in 2023. Unfortunately, the 6’7″ forward did not receive much of an opportunity, only appearing in 41 games across two seasons.
As a lengthy athletic wing, the 22-year-old was clearly a project who needs time to develop. In the 3.2 minutes he played, Lewis averaged 0.4 points, 0.1 rebounds, and 0.2 assists. Hopefully, he will get more of a look in a rebuilding situation with the Nets.
All in all, this is a move that could snowball into more as the Feb. 6 trade deadline approaches. Pelinka sees what the Lakers are doing to keep themselves above water and this could signify urgency to build a contender around LeBron James and Anthony Davis.
JJ Redick: ‘Mind-boggling’ Lakers star LeBron James is still this good
Leading up to LeBron James’ 22nd season, many expected there to be a drop off in his production. James is still playing at an All-Star level though, which is unprecedented at his game.
As James celebrates his 40th birthday, head coach JJ Redick talked about how ‘mind-boggling’ it is for the star to be this good despite his age.
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