The Los Angeles Lakers agreed to a trade with the Brooklyn Nets on Sunday, offloading D'Angelo Russell, Maxwell Lewis and a trio of second round picks in exchange for Dorian Finney-Smith and Shake Milton.
In the aftermath of the deal, general manager Rob Pelinka issued a statement in which he thanked Russell for his efforts throughout his second stint with the franchise, while welcoming the two newest Lakers to the organization.
"We want to thank D’Angelo for his second stint with us, where we celebrated some great moments and accomplishments on the court together. We want to wish him and Maxwell Lewis well in their future endeavors with the Brooklyn Nets," said Pelinka, via NBA insider Michael Scotto.
"With this trade, we are thrilled to add the physicality, toughness and elite shooting that Dorian Finney-Smith will bring to our core. We also greatly value the playmaking of Shake Milton. We are excited for our fans to get both of these players out on the court."
This marks the second time in his career that Russell will have been traded from the Lakers to the Nets. Both times, Pelinka was the decision-maker behind the deals, the first of which came just a few months after he was named GM in 2017.
This season, Russell has averaged a career-low 12.4 points (down from 18.0 in 2023-24), 4.7 assists and 2.8 rebounds while shooting 41.5% from the field and 33.3% from three-point territory. He's logged 26.8 minutes per game, the least he's played since the 2017-18 season.
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This article was originally published on www.si.com as Rob Pelinka Issues Statement After Lakers Trade D'Angelo Russell to Nets.
