The Russell Westbrook trade from the Los Angeles Lakers to the Utah Jazz also got D’Angelo Russell to reunite with the franchise that drafted him with the second overall pick in 2015.
That’s right, Russell is a Laker again. And you may not remember — or know — what happened the last time Russell was a Laker.
It was back in 2016 that a video leaked of Russell and then-teammate Nick Young chatting. Young was talking about cheating on his then-fiancee, rapper Iggy Azalea … and that video somehow leaked on to the internet.
At the end of that season, the Lakers dealt Russell to the Nets, and Magic Johnson revealed the reasoning was the guard’s video:
.@magicjohnson explains in full the reason why he stepped down as the Lakers president. pic.twitter.com/oats954tDP
— First Take (@FirstTake) May 20, 2019
Six years later, even though Young had said he would forgive Russell, Young said he’d want to fight Russell.
If @NickSwagyPYoung could box one NBA player…@SIChrisMannix knew right away 😂 pic.twitter.com/LkodjSE92i
— The Volume (@TheVolumeSports) September 2, 2022
So, uh, welcome back to LA.