Former Lakers guard Nick Young presumably did backflips when news broke of the franchise trading D’Angelo Russell, his former teammate, over the weekend.
Young, a native of Los Angeles, sent out a harsh tweet directed at Russell, asking the latter to “stay out” of his city for good.
As is well documented, Young felt betrayed by Russell when they were teammates during the latter’s rookie season in 2015-16. Russell had secretly recorded a private conversation in which Young admitted to cheating on his then-fiancee, Iggy Azalea.
After Russell posted the video on Snapchat, Young and Azalea’s relationship ended, leading to many Lakers reportedly isolating themselves from the rookie guard.
A few years later, then-Lakers director of basketball operations Magic Johnson admitted on ESPN’s “First Take” that the incident influenced his decision to trade Russell to the Nets.
In an ironic twist of fate, Russell was once again traded to the Nets on Sunday after being reacquired by the Lakers in 2023. While his second stint with the Lakers wasn’t nearly as tumultuous, he never won over the fan base or the organization with his inconsistent play.
That’s why Young wasn’t alone in rejoicing Russell’s departure on Sunday. Many Lakers fans took to social media to celebrate the news, poking fun at the fact that Russell’s last shot with the team hit the backboard and why it was symbolic of his streaky shooting.
Russell, a 10th-year guard out of Ohio State, is averaging a career-low 12.4 points while shooting a mediocre 33.3 percent from deep. Russell has also been a liability on defense, leading to Lakers head coach JJ Redick removing him from the starting unit in favor of Max Christie.
It’s unknown if the Brooklyn Nets plan to keep Russell or buy out the final year of his $18.6M deal.
