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The Brooklyn Nets remain the most active team on the trade market leading up to this year's deadline. They've agreed to a deal sending Dorian Finney-Smith and Shake Milton to the Los Angeles Lakers for D'Angelo Russell, Maxwell Lewis, and their 2027, 2030 and 2031 second-round picks, according to ESPN's Shams Charania.
With that, we assess the deal for the Nets and assign a grade.
Grading the deal for the Nets' return for Dorian Finney-Smith
The Nets ended any doubt about whether 2024-25 was a tanking season when they traded Dennis Schroder to the Golden State Warriors. The Finney-Smith deal continues an expected fire sale of Brooklyn's veterans as the team looks to accumulate draft capital and juice its lottery odds.
Finney-Smith was having one of the best seasons of his career, averaging 10.4 points while shooting a career-high 43.5 percent from three on 5.4 attempts per game. The 31-year-old ranks ninth in three-point percentage among 102 players attempting over five per game. Defensively, he's continued to guard one through five as Brooklyn's most versatile weapon.
Finney-Smith has posted a +15.9 net rating this season, the fifth-highest among all NBA players to play over 200 minutes. Removing him presents a significant blow to the Nets' three-point shooting, which ranks 28th over six games since the Schroder trade.
Brooklyn acquired Finney-Smith in a package for Kyrie Irving at the 2023 trade deadline. They were reportedly offered two first-round picks to flip him, although it's unclear from who and with what protections. They declined and held onto him until he was effectively an expiring contract. The veteran wing has a player option for $15.4 million next season, which he is expected to decline.
Given this, three distant, unprotected second-round picks from an aging Lakers squad and a young prospect in Lewis is a decent return. Brooklyn facilitated a similar deal at last year's deadline, sending Royce O'Neale's expiring contract to the Phoenix Suns for three second-rounders. The team now has 31 draft picks over the next seven years – 15 first-rounders and 16 second-rounders.
By acquiring Russell's $18.7 million expiring salary, the Nets increased their projected league-leading 2025 cap space to $65 million. It'll be interesting to see how Brooklyn handles the veteran point guard's return. Retaining him would be counterproductive to a tank. Russell has proven he can produce offensively throughout his career and will be highly motivated to perform during the second half of a contract season.
Despite this, the Nets and Russell are unlikely to agree to a buyout, according to HoopsHype's Michael Scotto. However, they could look to flip him in a trade before the Feb. 6 deadline.
Lewis is an intriguing young flier for the Nets. The Lakers selected the 6-foot-7 forward out of Pepperdine with the 40th pick in the 2023 draft. He's averaged 17.7 points, 7.2 rebounds, 2.5 assists, 1.3 steals and 0.9 blocks on 40/34/82 shooting splits over 10 G League appearances this season. With Finney-Smith out the door and Cam Johnson expected to follow, Brooklyn will offer the 22-year-old his first extended NBA opportunity.
Overall, the Nets' return for Finney-Smith is within the range of what many expected. However, they undoubtedly lost out on value by holding onto him over the last two years.
Trade grade: B-
