Los Angeles Lakers: Grading the team’s offseason moves so far
By Jason Elbaum
4. Trading D’Angelo Russell and Timofey Mozgov to Brooklyn for Brook Lopez and the 27th pick in the 2017 NBA Draft
It was a well-known fact around the league that the Lakers were trying to unload Timofey Mozgov’s four-year, $64 million contract and they would likely have to part with a young asset in order to accomplish this. The Brooklyn Nets emerged as a willing trade partner the night before the 2017 NBA Draft.
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The Lakers agreed to send their former second overall selection point guard D’Angelo Russell in a package with Mozgov to acquire former All-Star center Brook Lopez and the draft pick that the team used on Kyle Kuzma. This would allow the Lakers to take Mozgov off the books, add a veteran player, and make it abundantly clear they were selecting Lonzo Ball in the draft.
Brook Lopez has been a bit of a disappointment with his play this season, averaging a career-low 12.8 points per game and not protecting the rim the way the team expected. Perhaps he is not comfortable with the fast pace that the team wants to play with, but he has to contribute more on the offensive end if he wants to re-sign with the Lakers next summer.
As far as Kyle Kuzma, the Lakers have been pleasantly surprised with the rookie out of Utah, as he sits comfortably near the top of the Rookie of the Year race. His ability to put the ball on the floor in addition to being able to shoot from the outside at his size has helped his transition to the NBA, as he is averaging 16.6 points per game this season.
It remains to be seen how well this trade will pan out for the Lakers as D’Angelo Russell could still develop into a superstar they let get away. For now, the team can be happy that they got rid of Mozgov’s contract and have a young asset to be excited about in Kyle Kuzma.
Grade: B-