Russell Westbrook bid farewell to Los Angeles Lakers, D'Angelo Russell reunites with his old team
According to reputable source Adrian Wojnarowski of ESPN, 3 teams Los Angeles Lakers, Utah Jazz and Minnesota Timberwolves have completed an exchange involving 8 different players.
Specifically, the Lakers will bring in D'Angelo Russell, Malik Beasley and Jarred Vanderbilt. Russell Westbrook, Juan Toscano-Anderson, Damian Jones and the protected Lakers 2027 NBA Draft first-round pick will be sent to Utah.
Mike Conley Jr. and Utah Jazz's Nickeil Alexander-Walker will land in the Minnesota Timberwolves, along with future picks.
Utah Jazz will liquidate Russell Westbrook's contract once the exchange is complete, according to TNT's Chris Haynes. The LA Clippers are said to be interested in Westbrook, and the Chicago Bulls are also said to be interested in the former league MVP.
The trade-in deal finally ended Westbrook's more than one-season run in Los Angeles, as he had a rough start and was never the best of himself.
Since the Lakers swapped a bunch of player roles to the Washington Wizards for Westbrook, they've had a 58-79 record for more than a season and are likely to miss the playoffs for a second year in a row if they don't improve.
The friction caused Lakers head coach Frank Vogel to be fired. It was then that new head coach Darvin Ham quickly decided that Westbrook would play as a substitute this season, where he would be less likely to be scrutinized.
Despite LeBron James and Anthony Davis backing the Lakers to have Russell Westbrook in the squad, his ball-hungry play proved unsuitable in attack with Lebron James at the helm for two seasons. last tournament.
Like Russell Westbrook at the Lakers, D'Angelo Russell's time with Minnesota was also not a huge success.
D'Lo Russell's career began with the Lakers with the 2nd pick in the 2015 NBA Draft. He then moved to the Brooklyn Nets in 2017 for various reasons, most notably a drama involving teammate Nick Young.
In Brooklyn, Russell broke through to make his first All-Star roster, later landing at the Golden State Warriors in a deal to trade Kevin Durant to the Brooklyn Nets.
Having only played at the Warriors for less than a season, D'Angelo was once again traded to Minnesota, going in the opposite direction of the Andrew Wiggins trade to the Golden State.
In the Minnesota Timberwolves, D'Angelo Russell reunites with his close friend Karl-Anthony Towns. However, both did not achieve any outstanding achievements, reaching the Playoffs but being eliminated in the first round by the Memphis Grizzlies.
