The Lakers are on the verge of being swept out of the playoffs by the Nuggets and one of their biggest issues is the lack of production received from three key players acquired at the trade deadline, all of them former Minnesota Timberwolves: D’Angelo Russell, Malik Beasley and Jarred Vanderbilt.
Russell was supposed to be the 3-point shooter and floor general the Lakers needed to support LeBron James and Anthony Davis, but he’s been a non-factor in the Western Conference Finals. His latest dud featured 1-of-8 shooting, including 1-of-6 from 3, on Saturday night. He had 3 points and was benched after 20 ineffective minutes in Denver’s 119-108 victory to take a commanding 3-0 series lead.
Russell’s effort was on the back of a dud in Game 2 and a thud in Game 1. For the series, he’s averaging 7.0 points on 29.6% shooting including a miserable 14.3% from downtown.
Denver’s Bruce Brown said after Game 1 that the game plan was to attack Russell because he’s not a very good defender. Denver knows Russell is a liability and the Lakers have confirmed by benching him that he’s unplayable when his shot isn’t falling.
But Russell isn’t the only former Timberwolf letting the Lakers down.
Vanderbilt, who was part of the Wolves’ blockbuster deal with Utah for Rudy Gobert last summer, was packaged along with Malik Beasley in the three-team deal that took Russell Westbrook off the Lakers and sent Mike Conley from Utah to Minnesota (and Russell to the Lakers).
Vanderbilt has 6 points and 4 rebounds in the Western Conference Finals. Known as a solid defender and rebounder who plays with a ton of energy, Vanderbilt played just 10 minutes off the bench in Game 1 and then started Games 2 and 3 only to spend most of each night on the bench because Rui Hachimura outplayed him.
Beasley has played a total of one minute in the conference finals after averaging just over six minutes per game off the bench in the semifinals against Golden State. He was supposed to be the sharpshooter the Lakers needed to help space the floor, but he’s turned into a major disappointment in L.A.
Meanwhile, the Timberwolves received Conley, Nickeil Alexander-Walker and three future second-round picks in the Russell trade. The Jazz were able to shed salary and dump Westbrook immediately after the deal, in addition to gaining the Lakers’ 2027 first-round pick.
Russell will be a free agent this summer and his market is fading fast. The Lakers have a $16 million team option on Beasley, and based on his results there doesn’t seem to be a high chance they pick that up. Vanderbilt will undoubtedly be back in L.A. on a $4 million deal before becoming a free agent in 2024.
So who won the trade?
The Lakers went deep, but in a city where championship or bust is the lifestyle, they appear to have lost the trade by falling short and getting little to nothing from all three when the lights are brightest.
The Jazz are sitting pretty with a ton of future draft picks and a solid core that centers around Lauri Markkanen, Collin Sexton and Walker Kessler.
The Timberwolves will undoubtedly be improved next season with a fully healthy Karl-Anthony Towns (unless he’s traded) and a full year of Conley’s veteran leadership at point guard.
Bottom line: Minnesota and Utah have current and future assets while the only piece the Lakers might have next season is Vanderbilt.
