The Los Angeles Lakers snapped a three-game losing streak with a 107-98 win over the rebuilding Portland Trail Blazers without LeBron James.
D’Angelo Russell exploded off the bench with a season-high 28 points and 14 assists. Despite his breakthrough performance, Russell remains on the trade block as the Lakers’ salary ballast in any potential in-season move that could help improve their 26th-ranked defense if they truly want to contend in the strong Western Conference.
Greg Swartz of Bleacher Report suggested a trade involving Russell that could land them the Brooklyn Nets‘ veteran pair of Dorian Finney-Smith and former Laker Dennis Schröder.
Los Angeles Lakers Receive: Dorian Finney-Smith, Dennis Schröder
Brooklyn Nets Receive: D’Angelo Russell, Jalen Hood-Schifino, Cam Reddish, Christian Wood, 2029 first-round pick (top-5 protected)
“It’s a win-win for two franchises that have different goals this season and beyond,” Swartz wrote of his trade idea.
The Lakers get veteran help for James and Anthony Davis who can improve their lackluster defense.
On the other hand, the Nets get a first-round pick and Hood-Schifino, whom they have shown interest in the past, NBA insider Jake Fischer reported for Bleacher Report. Plus, they can rehab Russell’s value. It was in Brooklyn where Russell became an All-Star before the Kevin Durant–Kyrie Irving era.
Finney-Smith is one of the top 3-and-D wings in the NBA who could ease the defensive burden on James and Davis in the frontcourt and also could cover their backcourt’s point-of-attack defense.
Schröder is already familiar with playing alongside James and Davis.
At this point in their careers, Schröder is an upgrade over Russell.
Lakers Eye Dorian Finney-Smith
The Lakers have their eyes on Finney-Smith for quite some time now, according to Anthony Irwin of Clutchpoints.
“The Lakers checked in on Dorian Finney-Smith last year and have been in kind of constant contact with the Nets about him,” Irwin said during the November 25 episode of the “Lakers Lounge” show on X with his guest, Bleacher Report and The Stein Line’s “People Insider” Jake Fischer.
Irwin added that Finney-Smith is a more realistic trade target for the Lakers than Cam Johnson, whom the Nets highly value.
“Cam Johnson is another name that comes to mind, but his asking price is kind of tough for the Lakers to match,” Irwin said.
Finney-Smith’s versatility on defense, especially on the perimeter, is what this current Lakers roster lacks since they dumped Kentavious Caldwell-Pope and let Alex Caruso walk.
A scenario of having either Finney-Smith or sharpshooter rookie Dalton Knecht in the Lakers’ lineup would open the floor for their stars.
Finney-Smith is sinking 43.2% of his 3-pointers this season while averaging 10.6 points, 4.3 rebounds and 1.8 assists per game for the Nets this season.
The Backcourt Leader They Are Missing
At the rate Gabe Vincent is playing, it’s sufficient to say the Lakers messed up in letting Schröder walk in the summer of 2023 and replace him with the former Miami Heat guard.
Schröder has been stellar since he left the Lakers.
The German point guard led his national team to a gold medal run in the 2023 FIBA World Cup in Manila and reached the quarterfinals of the 2024 Paris Olympics.
Now, he’s starring in the Nets’s competitive run in the Eastern Conference, averaging 18.6 points and 6.5 assists, despite their lowly projection as a lottery team after trading away Mikal Bridges in the offseason.
The Lakers need someone like Schröder, who can ease the playmaking burden on James and Austin Reaves and also someone who can take over in close games when the defense is focused on the team’s stars.
