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Lakers’ Dorian Finney-Smith takes shot at ‘little brother’ Nets after trade

Originally posted on NBA on ClutchPoints
By Rexwell Villas | Last updated Dec 30, 2024 9:31 PM ET

The Los Angeles Lakers have a new weapon after making an attention-grabbing move recently to acquire versatile forward Dorian Finney-Smith via a trade from the Brooklyn Nets. For the veteran forward, going from the Nets to the Lakers is a welcome development for a number of reasons.

For one, he won’t be playing for a “little brother” franchise anymore, as the Nets are always viewed from that perspective with respect to the existence of the New York Knicks.

“But I’m happy I’m here, I’m not, I don’t want to say that because, but if you play for Brooklyn, you know what I mean, you want to be the little brother in the city. So I’m fine with the big brotherhood, so that feels good,” Finney-Smith told reporters on Monday (h/t Stefan Bondy of the New York Post).

What will Dorian Finney-Smith’s impact be on the Lakers?

Brooklyn Nets forward Dorian Finney-Smith (28) warms up prior to the game against the San Antonio Spurs at Barclays Center. Wendell Cruz-Imagn Images

Finney-Smith gives the Lakers someone who can play the 3-and-D role while adding depth to Los Angeles’ banged-up frontcourt. At the moment, Los Angeles is missing the likes of Jaxson Hayes, Jarred Vanderbilt and Christian Wood due to injuries. Vanderbilt and Wood have yet to even play a game in the 2024-25 NBA regular season. With Finney-Smith, the Lakers have someone who can shore up the team’s frontcourt and perimeter defense, thanks to his ability to cover multiple positions.

One area where Finney-Smith can make a big impact is on the Lakers’ outside shooting. So far in the NBA 2024-25 campaign, the Lakers are just 27th in the league with an average of 11.8 three-pointers made per game. Finney-Smith, on the other hand, projects to be a solid weapon for the Lakers’ playmakers, primarily LeBron James, who is well known for his penchant for finding shooters on offense.

Before he got traded to the Lakers, Finney-Smith averaged 10.4 points and shot 43.5 percent from deep with the Nets this season. He is also making 43.3 percent of his catch-and-shoot attempts from behind the arc. That sounds terrific for the Lakers, who are third-worst in the league in that area with only 8.3 catch-and-shoot 3-pointers per game.

The 31-year-old Finney-Smith can make his Lakers debut as soon as this Tuesday when Los Angeles hosts the Cleveland Cavaliers in Tinseltown.

This article first appeared on NBA on ClutchPoints and was syndicated with permission.

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