Latest news with #DorianFinneySmith
Yahoo
6 days ago
- Entertainment
- Yahoo
"Thought I Was Going To Finish My Career With Luka": Dorian Finney-Smith Opens Up On His Bond With Luka Doncic
"Thought I Was Going To Finish My Career With Luka": Dorian Finney-Smith Opens Up On His Bond With Luka Doncic originally appeared on Fadeaway World. When Luka Doncic was traded to the Lakers, it became increasingly evident to the world that the Lakers are planning to make him the face of their franchise for the coming decade. One of the key players on the Lakers who was delighted to hear this news was Doncic's former teammate Dorian Finney-Smith. He almost couldn't believe that Doncic was headed to the Lakers. In a recent interview with Wavy TV 10, Finney-Smith spoke about how he felt when he reunited with Luka Doncic in the Lakers and how Doncic reacted to his move to the Rockets. 'Oh, man. I was so happy, man. To be honest, I thought I was going to finish my career with Luka in LA, but like I said, things happened. We were excited, you know, happy to get him back. Also sad that everything that happened, you know, with the trade, you know, him being, you know, just the whole emotional thing, the bad talk about his weight, and just all that, cause I knew who he is as a person." "He, you know, he won't talk badly about anybody, and you know, he cares. Just like when I went to the Rockets, he shot me a text, 'I'm happy for you. I'm proud of you. I know you're excited to be back with your kids and family.' Things like that show me that he cared.' Doncic and Finney-Smith had been teammates ever since Doncic was drafted to the NBA in 2018. They both played on the Mavericks till 2023 before Finney-Smith was traded to the Nets for Kyrie Irving. They then reunited in LA while playing for the Lakers last season, and now have been separated again due to Finney-Smith's move to the Rockets. Experts were shocked to see the Lakers let Dorian Finney-Smith walk away as a free agent this summer, considering his fit on the roster with Luka Doncic. The Lakers indicated that they plan to rebuild around Doncic this summer, but they let go of a key asset who could've been crucial for the Lakers in the coming seasons. As a sharpshooting wing who is defensively skilled, Finney Smith perfectly fits the profile of the type of player the Lakers need at the moment to play alongside Luka. A career 36.2% shooter from beyond the arc, Finney-Smith makes 38.1% of his corner threes on average, which became a key asset for the Mavericks in the time this duo played together there. Doncic's ability to drive in and collapse the defense so he can kick out the ball to the corner for an open shot became the bread and butter of their offensive strategy. The Lakers have now replaced Dorian Finney-Smith with Jake LaRavia, who last played for the Sacramento Kings and Memphis Grizzlies. Do you think the Lakers will be able to replicate the chemistry between Finney-Smith and Doncic with LaRavia? I highly doubt it. But let us know what you think in the comments story was originally reported by Fadeaway World on Jul 21, 2025, where it first appeared.
Yahoo
23-07-2025
- Sport
- Yahoo
Lakers GM Rob Pelinka Quietly Turns Dorian Finney-Smith Into Deandre Ayton, Marcus Smart, And Jake LaRavia
Lakers GM Rob Pelinka Quietly Turns Dorian Finney-Smith Into Deandre Ayton, Marcus Smart, And Jake LaRavia originally appeared on Fadeaway World. At the start of the 2025 offseason, Rob Pelinka was under heavy fire. The Lakers had just been eliminated in the first round of the playoffs. Dorian Finney-Smith, their best perimeter defender and an elite two-way wing, left in free agency. And after trading for Luka Doncic and bringing back LeBron James, expectations were sky-high. But instead of a blockbuster signing or a bold trade, the Lakers started the summer with silence and disappointment. Finney-Smith's departure was a significant blow. He had arrived from Brooklyn in a midseason trade and quickly became a key contributor. More importantly, he had strong chemistry with Luka Doncic, their former Dallas Mavericks connection adding a sense of stability on and off the court. Losing Finney-Smith, especially without an immediate replacement, raised serious questions about the Lakers' direction and urgency. Yet behind the scenes, Pelinka was working. Quietly. And the pieces slowly began to fall into place. Instead of committing big money to retain Finney-Smith, who signed a four-year, $52.7 million deal with the Houston Rockets, Pelinka opted for value. He spread the same salary over three key players: Jake LaRavia, DeAndre Ayton, and Marcus Smart. On paper, none of them match Finney-Smith's defensive prowess one-on-one. But together? They might actually provide more balance, versatility, and long-term upside, all for roughly the same annual cost. Let's break it down. Deandre Ayton signed a two-year deal worth $16.2 million or $8.1 million per year. Jake LaRavia joined on a two-year, $12 million deal or $6 million annually. And Marcus Smart took a two-year, $11.0 million contract, averaging $5.5 million a year. That adds up to just over $19.3 million per year, which is well within the range the Lakers would have had to pay Finney-Smith alone, had they pursued a longer deal. What Pelinka did was flip a potential $18–20 million long-term investment into a three-player package that adds shooting, defense, leadership, and depth, all without being locked into future salary past 2027. And age matters too. Finney-Smith is already 32 and was reportedly eligible for a four-year extension worth up to $96.5 million, which would have locked the Lakers into paying serious money for a declining asset into his mid-30s. By contrast, LaRavia is just 24 and still developing. Ayton is 27, entering his physical prime. Even Marcus Smart, at 31, brings defensive intensity and leadership at a very manageable price and on a short-term commitment. This isn't to say the Lakers are now instant title favorites. They still need another move, and Pelinka has yet to cash in on his tradeable assets. But these signings, once seen as underwhelming, now look smart, calculated, and financially shrewd. For all the early noise about failure, Pelinka may have pulled off one of the most overlooked value plays of the offseason. While the Lakers haven't hit a home run, they've quietly loaded the bases. And all of this couldn't come at a better time, because Luka Doncic's extension talks are right around the corner. The superstar guard is eligible to sign a four-year, $228 million extension this summer, and the Lakers' front office knows every move counts. The fact that Doncic actively recruited both Ayton and Smart speaks volumes. He's invested. He's involved. And more importantly, he wants to build something real in Los Angeles. These efficient, flexible moves signal to Luka that the Lakers are serious about constructing a sustainable contender around him. That kind of long-term vision might be exactly what convinces him to story was originally reported by Fadeaway World on Jul 20, 2025, where it first appeared.
Yahoo
18-07-2025
- Sport
- Yahoo
Woike: Lakers want flexibility to pursue second superstar soon
Several hours into the official start of NBA free agency, the Los Angeles Lakers, at least so far, look like losers. They lost forward Dorian Finney-Smith to the Houston Rockets, and at the same time, they have watched as one free agent center after another has gotten snatched by other teams. They did get 23-year-old forward Jake LaRavia, who is an underwhelming but possibly intriguing player, to agree to sign with them. There is still the possibility that center Deandre Ayton, who agreed to a buyout of his contract with the Portland Trail Blazers, will come. However, Lakers fans, by and large, are feeling pessimistic right now. If the Lakers do indeed end up having a weak free agency period, one reason could be that they're looking down the road. Dan Woike of The Athletic wrote that the team is looking to maintain flexibility in order to obtain a second superstar to pair with Luka Doncic. "As free agency begins, the Lakers are motivated not to sacrifice long-term flexibility as they begin to arm themselves for a potential run at another superstar to pair with Dončić as soon as next summer," wrote Woike. The thinking seems to be that there could be a superstar available in free agency in the summer of 2026 or 2027. Someone such as Giannis Antetokounmpo or Nikola Jokic could be had if they don't sign contract extensions with their current teams beforehand. Los Angeles is set to have a boatload of salary cap space next summer, especially since LeBron James picked up his player option for the 2025-26 season. It is starting to look like the James era is truly winding down for the franchise, as it shifts its focus in earnest to building a winning team around Doncic. This article originally appeared on LeBron Wire: Woike: Lakers want flexibility to pursue second superstar soon
Yahoo
18-07-2025
- Sport
- Yahoo
Rob Pelinka Reportedly Pissed Off Dorian Finney-Smith By Lowballing Him
Rob Pelinka Reportedly Pissed Off Dorian Finney-Smith By Lowballing Him originally appeared on Fadeaway World. The Los Angeles Lakers suffered a big blow on the opening day of free agency, as the Houston Rockets signed Dorian Finney-Smith to a four-year, $53 million deal. The Lakers had hoped to retain Finney-Smith, but team insider Jovan Buha reported that they tried to lowball him and that backfired. "The DFS situation had nothing to do with [the apron]," Buha said. "What it had to do with was them lowballing him and trying to get cute with the offer, and him not being so happy with that, among other things that again, I don't really want to dive into." Buha was then asked if Lakers general manager Rob Pelinka is the man to blame for Finney-Smith's departure. He admitted that it was difficult to say, considering he had heard different things about the whole situation, but the only certain aspect was the lowballing part. "The only thing I concretely have is the lowball part of it," Buha stated. "So, from that perspective, I would say, yes, he screwed it up lowballing and I think that was a mistake." Finney-Smith's unhappiness with the negotiations also meant he was unlikely to have any interest in helping the Lakers by agreeing to a sign-and-trade deal. The 32-year-old just walked out the door, and the team got nothing for him. This has turned out to be bad asset management on Pelinka's part. He knew Finney-Smith could hit free agency in 2025 by opting out of his $15.4 million player option, before acquiring the veteran from the Brooklyn Nets. The Lakers gave up D'Angelo Russell, Maxwell Lewis, and three second-round picks for Finney-Smith in December 2024 and have now lost him for nothing less than a year later. They didn't give up any premium assets as part of the package, but it's still not ideal. Finney-Smith's departure is particularly going to hurt the Lakers defensively. They have managed to sign Jake LaRavia to a two-year deal, and while he's no slouch on that end of the floor, he just isn't as good as the departing veteran. Finney-Smith, who averaged 7.9 points, 3.6 rebounds, 1.4 assists, 0.9 steals, and 0.3 blocks per game as a Laker, had also impressed when the Lakers played small-ball lineups. It will be interesting to see how effective those are in 2025-26 without him. Getting back to Pelinka, it appears this wasn't the only thing he did to anger Finney-Smith. Lakers insider Anthony Irwin reported that he was trying to tank the veteran's value by talking to other teams about his ankle problems. "The word out there is that Rob Pelinka was going out there and talking to teams about Dorian's [ankle] to tank Dorian's free agency value and the offers that could potentially come in on him," Irwin said. "Word is that got back to Dorian and his camp," Finney-Smith played 63 games for the Nets and Lakers last season. Issues with his left ankle were what caused him to miss games, and he required offseason surgery to fix the problem. If Pelinka indeed tried to tank Finney-Smith's value in this manner, he was never going to come back. That bridge would have been burned completely. Buha was asked about this report as well and interestingly refused to comment on it. Make of that what you story was originally reported by Fadeaway World on Jul 1, 2025, where it first appeared.
Yahoo
16-07-2025
- Sport
- Yahoo
NBA free agency 2025: The 7 best contracts of the summer, including a gem of a deal for the Lakers
We brought you the NBA offseason's seven worst contracts, and we know you could not possibly feel complete without the summer's seven best contracts. Never fear, my friends. Here, we complete you. Kudos to general managers for once again not doling out dozens of overpriced deals in free agency. Of course, it helps that only one team, the Brooklyn Nets, entered July with significant salary cap space, and they were more interested in accumulating other teams' bad money in exchange for more draft capital. Advertisement Instead, NBA executives mostly had mid-level exceptions and minimum contracts to address their needs, and that served them well in the open market, where a number of them were able to identify some gems. THE 2025 OFFSEASON'S 7 BEST CONTRACTS 1. Dorian Finney-Smith, Houston Rockets ($13.2M AAV) Contract: 4 years, $52.7 million ($26 million guaranteed) Percentage of the 2025-26 salary cap: 8.21% 2024-25 (63 games): 8.7 PTS (45/41/67), 3.9 REB, 1.4 AST Cost Per Win: $4,543,534.48 The Rockets took a big swing at the reigning champion Oklahoma City Thunder, trading Jalen Green, Dillon Brooks and a handful of draft picks for Kevin Durant, going all in on their quest to win the Western Conference. Durant's scoring represents a massive upgrade from Green, but the trade did leave a whole on the wing, where Brooks served as a high-level defender who could knock down shots in open space. (Joseph Raines/Yahoo Sports Illustration) So, the Rockets targeted Finney-Smith, one of the best available 3-and-D role players on the market. He joins Amen Thompson and Tari Eason for what should be a ferocious defensive wing rotation. Advertisement In the process, Houston hindered the Los Angeles Lakers, a conference rival, who dealt D'Angelo Russell, Maxwell Lewis and three second-round picks for Finney-Smith in December. The Lakers must have made that move with the intention of re-signing Finney-Smith, whose history with Luka Dončić dates back to their days on the Dallas Mavericks. But the Rockets made a more compelling offer: A shot to win a title. The Lakers reportedly would not offer Finney-Smith a contract longer than two years, and in the end that is what the Rockets got him for, as neither of the final two years of Finney-Smith's deal is guaranteed. 2. Nickeil Alexander-Walker, Atlanta Hawks ($15.2M AAV) Contract: 4 years, $60.7 million (player option in 2028-29) Percentage of the 2025-26 salary cap: 9.8% 2024-25 (82 games): 9.4 PTS (44/38/78), 3.2 REB, 2.7 AST Cost Per Win: $3,526,000 Advertisement The other top 3-and-D role player on the market, Alexander-Walker, secured even more guaranteed money from the Hawks, who will add him to a wing rotation that includes rising star Jalen Johnson, Most Improved Player Dyson Daniels and 2024 No. 1 overall pick Zaccharie Risacher. Alexander-Walker, a cousin of Thunder superstar Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, was a throw-in to a three-team February 2023 trade between the Lakers, Timberwolves and Utah Jazz. In Minnesota, he quietly built his value as a reliable reserve for a team that made consecutive Western Conference finals appearances. The Hawks are hoping to do the same in the East, building around four-time All-Star point guard Trae Young and newly acquired center Kristaps Porzingis. In between the defensively questionable Young and the oft-injured Porzingis, it is wise to stack as many two-way wings as possible, and NAW is one of them. 3. Guerschon Yabusele, New York Knicks ($5.6M AAV) Contract: 2 years, $11.3 million (player option in 2026-27) Percentage of the 2025-26 salary cap: 3.56% 2024-25 (70 games): 11 PTS (50/38/73), 5.6 REB, 2.1 AST Cost Per Win: $1,445,512.82 Advertisement Once a first-round pick for the Boston Celtics in 2016, Yabusele required years of seasoning overseas to reestablish himself as an NBA contributor. Following an impressive performance in the 2024 Olympics, the Philadelphia 76ers gave Yabusele his chance at redemption, and the Frenchman seized it. Playing for a terrible Sixers team, Yabusele had plenty of opportunities to showcase his capabilities as a shooter and switchable defender, especially in the frontcourt, where he can play some small-ball center. He should extend the rotation for the Knicks, who reached the Eastern Conference finals with only Miles McBride and Mitchell Robinson — and no one on the wings in between — to capably come off the bench. New York also smartly added Jordan Clarkson's scoring to its reserve unit on a veteran's minimum deal. 4. Deandre Ayton, Los Angeles Lakers ($8.1M AAV) Contract: 2 years, $16.2 million (player option in 2026-27) Percentage of the 2025-26 salary cap: 5.24% 2024-25 (40 games): 14.4 PTS (57/19/67), 10.2 REB, 1.6 AST Cost Per Win: $2,894,285.71 Advertisement The Lakers entered this offseason in desperate need of a center, as last season's post-Dončić-trade attempts to force Jaxson Hayes into a starting role failed miserably in the first round of the playoffs. And for at least a week of free agency it appeared the Lakers might strike out entirely in that regard. They avoided disaster, coming to terms with Ayton, who negotiated a buyout from the Portland Trail Blazers to become available. The Lakers could have done a lot worse than a 26-year-old former No. 1 overall draft pick who has averaged a double-double in each of his first seven seasons in the NBA. I get that the Blazers paid him $25.6 million not to play for them this season. I get that he has underwhelmed as a recent No. 1 overall pick, often demonstrating a lack of commitment to his team. But if he can recommit to the brand of basketball that made him an invaluable member of the Phoenix Suns' 2021 NBA Finals run — protecting the rim, running in transition, finishing around the basket and setting hard screens in the pick-and-roll for the Lakers' three best players — he should easily exceed his value. 5. Ty Jerome, Memphis Grizzlies ($9.2M AAV) Contract: 3 years, $27.7 million (player option in 2027-28) Percentage of the 2025-26 salary cap: 5.68% 2024-25 (74 games): 12.5 PTS (52/44/87), 2.5 REB, 3.4 AST Cost Per Win: $1,562,720.34 Advertisement Ty Jerome was a serious Sixth Man of the Year candidate last season, coming off the bench to control the Cleveland Cavaliers' offense in the absence of All-Star guards Donovan Mitchell and Darius Garland. He performed that duty better than most anyone ever expected. After all, the Cavs were a 64-win team. Cleveland underwhelmed in the playoffs, and Jerome was no small part of that. His defensive limitations became more obvious, and his shot abandoned him against the Indiana Pacers in the Eastern Conference semifinals, where Jerome made just 30% of his field-goal attempts (including 25% of his 3-point attempts). But as a backup to Ja Morant in Memphis, he is perfectly suited. Morant is not always healthy, and the Grizzlies are at their best when they can play a capable backup point guard for their All-NBA superstar. 6. Bruce Brown Jr., Denver Nuggets ($3.1M AAV) Contract : 1 year, $3.1 million Percentage of the 2025-26 salary cap : 1.48% 2024-25 (74 games): 8.3 PTS (42/33/82), 4 REB, 2 AST Cost Per Win: $4,401,315.71 Advertisement Brown was a beloved member of the 2023 NBA champion Nuggets, serving as a two-way dynamo off the bench. His cutting especially meshed well with Denver superstar Nikola Jokić's passing prowess. Brown left the Nuggets for the Pacers, accepting a two-year, $45 million deal that Denver could not match. It has been a winding road for Brown ever since, as he dealt with injuries and a trade to the Toronto Raptors in the meantime. Despite some struggles, there is still the belief that the 28-year-old Brown could rediscover what made him so impactful on the Nuggets, and on a minimum deal no less. 7. Gary Trent Jr., Milwaukee Bucks ($3.8M AAV) Contract: 2 years, $7.6 million Percentage of the 2025-26 salary cap: 2.39% 2024-25 (74 games): 11.1 PTS (43/42/85), 2.3 REB, 1.2 AST Cost Per Win: $1,148,343.33 Advertisement The Bucks gave Trent a modest raise to retain the services of one of the NBA's more undervalued wings. Trent is not the greatest defender, but he gives great effort, and he shot a career-high 42% from distance this past season — pretty important stuff when you play alongside Giannis Antetokounmpo. Trent is a guy who has averaged as many as 18.3 points per game, and he made as much as $18.6 million in the 2023-24 campaign. He could not find any big-money offers last summer, when few teams held salary cap space, so he opted to rebuild his value in Milwaukee, where he submitted one of his better seasons, even twice dropping more than 30 points in a pair of first-round playoff games against Indiana. Advertisement The money still was not there for Trent this summer, so the Bucks scored him at a bargain ... again. He may be the best example of how role players are being squeezed under the NBA's new collective bargaining agreement, as high-priced superstars eat up much of the cap, leaving scraps for anyone else.
