D’Angelo Russell on Spencer Dinwiddie, Lakers Rumors: You’ll ‘Get to Know Him Soon’

Adam WellsFebruary 10, 2024

Kevork Djansezian/Getty Images

If the Los Angeles Lakers want to keep their interest in Spencer Dinwiddie a secret, they are doing a bad job right now.

D’Angelo Russell, who was teammates with Dinwiddie for two seasons with the Brooklyn Nets, told reporters after the Lakers’ win over the New Orleans Pelicans on Friday that they “will get to know [Dinwiddie] soon.”

Dinwiddie was seen at the game sitting in the stands at Crypto.com Arena next to Lakers general manager Rob Pelinka.

Bleacher Report @BleacherReportSpencer Dinwiddie at the Lakers-Pelicans game with Rob Pelinka 👀 pic.twitter.com/aJAzGnoNNE

Dinwiddie was waived by the Toronto Raptors, who acquired him from the Nets on Thursday, and is expected to be sought after by several playoff contenders on the buyout market when he officially becomes a free agent.

Per Shams Charania of The Athletic and Stadium (starts at 1:30:00 mark), the Lakers, Pelicans, Dallas Mavericks and Philadelphia 76ers are all expected to make a push for Dinwiddie.

Dan Woike of the Los Angeles Times noted the Lakers and Mavs are considered the favorites to sign the 30-year-old.

Dinwiddie spent parts of two seasons with the Mavericks. He was acquired in a February 2022 trade with the Washington Wizards before being traded to the Nets in February 2023 as part of the Kyrie Irving deal.

It’s probably not a coincidence that the best shooting stretch of Dinwiddie’s career came when he played in an offense led by Luka Dončić. He made 40.4 percent of his three-pointers on 5.9 attempts per game in 76 games with the Mavericks.

The only other time Dinwiddie has shot more than 34.0 percent from behind the arc over a full season was in 2016-17 with the Nets (37.6 percent on 1.7 attempts per game). He’s a 33.1 percent career shooter from three-point range in 514 games.

Signing with the Lakers would allow Dinwiddie to play with another elite passer in LeBron James who can set him up with easy three-point looks. He would give them more depth as they look for scoring help after being unable to make a major addition prior to the trade deadline.

Los Angeles has been playing better recently with six wins in its last nine games. The Lakers still sit in ninth place in the Western Conference with a 28-26 record, but they are within two games of the Mavs for the No. 8 seed.