What does trading D’Angelo Russell mean for the Lakers?

Historically, teams are active on the day of the NBA trade deadline, making multiple trades — sometimes within a few minutes of each other — and overwhelming fans with trade information that makes it difficult to know what the heck is going on.

The Los Angeles Lakers and Brooklyn Nets decided to give us all a break from that confusion by making an early deal, providing us ample time to absorb the change of scenery.

The change? D’Angelo Russell going to the Nets with Maxwell Lewis and three second-round selections (2027, 2030, and 2031), and Dorian Finney-Smith and Shake Milton going to L.A.

Let’s be clear immediately. No one here came out looking poorly, and both sides achieved what they wanted to achieve. If you’re looking for grades, both scored a solid B+ on this one, and let’s get into why.

The Lakers are competitive, and they have two of the best players in all of basketball in Anthony Davis and LeBron James. They needed legitimate weapons around him, and Finney-Smith fits that bill as a diverse 6-foot-7 wing-big who can defend at a high level and connect on a high percentage of his 3-point attempts.

At 31, Finney-Smith is hitting 43.5% of his 5.4 3 attempts per game, while covering everything from shooting guards to smaller centers, often with a high level of defensive discipline.

It should come as no surprise the Lakers sorely needed a two-way player who could participate on both sides of the court for long stretches. Outside of Davis, the roster was loaded with players who had their primary skill geared toward either offense or defense, and with the acquisition of Finney-Smith, they finally found a player whom they can rely on for a potential deep playoff push.

Giving up Russell, who’s been borderline unplayable during certain periods of this season, is almost addition by subtraction. His defense has been problematic, and his offensive decision-making never seemed to mesh with new head coach JJ Redick.

Of course, the Lakers had to pay for that upgrade by relinquishing draft equity, but did so without sacrificing a first-round pick, which is noteworthy.

The addition of Milton gives the Lakers an instant-offense-type player off the bench who can see his minutes get extended in a pinch, if need arises.

For Brooklyn, this is all about the Benjamins. Russell is an $18.6 million expiring contract who has little trade value, but the Nets are rebuilding. They knew they could lose Finney-Smith, who has a $15.3 million player option next summer, so they decided to get out ahead of that by acquiring a full-fledged expiring deal while securing three second-rounders to add to their draft capital.

Russell has no immediate because of his play this season, so Brooklyn likely doesn’t have an issue with him leaving for nothing in the 2025 offseason.

That said, there’s another component to this, which aids the Nets.

It turns out Brooklyn has been surprisingly competitive this season (12-20), to the point where you can make a real argument the Nets have won too many games already.

Russell as an indirect tank commander could be a low-key shrewd move, as the 6-5 guard isn’t exactly an efficient offensive player, nor does he play the caliber of defense that helps you win games.

The downgrade from Finney-Smith to Russell is substantial, and that’s in large part why the Nets get the same grade as the Lakers, given their aspirations of picking high in the 2025 NBA Draft.