New Lakers Arrival Already Making Off-the-Court Impact in L.A.

The Los Angeles Lakers got ahead of the trade frenzy awaiting next month by pulling off a notable deal at the end of December, acquiring sought-after wing Dorrian Finney-Smith and guard Shake Milton from the Brooklyn Nets for a package headlined by D'Angelo Russell.

The ultimate impact of this seismic move is still to be determined as these players settle in. Finney-Smith has gotten off to a slow start in Los Angeles, but he's coming off of a showing against the Atlanta Hawks that saw him post Lakers highs in points (8), rebounds (5) and threes (2).

While DFS looks to get really going on the court, he's wasted no time helping the team behind the scenes, it turns out.

Jacob Rude of Silver Screen and Roll wrote that Finney-Smith is already developing a mentoring relationship with Lakers guard Max Christie. He is making sure to keep the young energizer focused on the right things: which is bringing his hustle on defense, even if it doesn't lead to major offensive involvement right away.

"I told him I’ve been in his shoes before. Sometimes you play defense all day and you might not get a shot. A lot of people don’t keep their intensity when they ain’t getting the ball. I just try to preach it to them that I’ve been there before and that’s what made me valuable in this league."

It's great to see Finney-Smith, who's 31 years old and in the middle of his eighth NBA campaign, lending his wisdom to a player in Christie who's only 21 and just starting to see a legitimate role in L.A.

Christie's already shown he's embracing his newfound playing time with the Lakers by posting a career-high 7.8 PPG in 2024-25, but there will be times where the shots are few and far between. Finney-Smith is ensuring the rising Lakers contributor doesn't lose sight of the bigger picture here and sets himself up for the future by continuing to work hard on defense regardless.

With Finney-Smith's long-term future in L.A. unclear after this season, the veteran could only focus on himself and getting the most money in free agency this summer. The fact he's helping out a younger teammate like this shows he's determined to make an impact, though, for as long as he's in the purple and gold.

In other Lakers news: