After an offseason of inactivity, the Los Angeles Lakers have come alive on the trade market. In less than a month and a half, Los Angeles has completed roster-overhauling trades for Luka Doncic, Dorian Finney-Smith, and Mark Williams.
Following the shocking acquisition of Williams, the unavoidable truth in Los Angeles is that the Lakers' best starting lineup consists of all three of their new players.
The Lakers have an abundance of options to consider for the fourth and final spot in the starting lineup. The other four spots are locked up by Doncic, LeBron James, Austin Reaves, and Williams, but options exist at forward.
The most likely players to be considered are Finney-Smith, Rui Hachimura, and Jarred Vanderbilt—all of whom bring noteworthy traits to the table.
Hachimura is the most complete scoring threat of the three, possessing the athleticism and skill level to attack closeouts, space the floor, and play above the rim. Vanderbilt lacks offensive refinement, but is a wing stopper with elite capabilities on the defensive end of the floor.
To bridge the gap and give the starting lineup the balance it needs, however, the biggest winner of the Doncic and Williams trades is also the ideal fifth starter: Finney-Smith.
Dorian Finney-Smith is the perfect fit for Lakers' starting lineup
In a lineup that's flush with productive scorers and playmakers, Finney-Smith would fill an essential role. He's the prototypical 3-and-D wing, possessing the ability to defend an opponent's best player and space the floor on the other end.
Considering there will be a learning curve as Doncic, James, Reaves, and Williams vie for touches, Finney-Smith being willing and able to play without the ball could prove essential.
On the offensive end of the floor, Finney-Smith has proven adept at working off of screens to get himself open. He also has preexisting chemistry with each of the Lakers' top facilitators, having played with James and Reaves since late December, and Doncic between 2018 and 2023.
Considering Williams is more of an interior-based player, Finney-Smith's floor-spacing also makes him a more viable option than Vanderbilt, whose range is limited.
On the other end of the floor, it's fair to question who of Doncic, James, Reaves, and Williams can be trusted for consistent contributions at this stage. All four have proven capable of defending at a respectable or even high level, but there are concerns about the reliability of those efforts.
Finney-Smith, meanwhile, offers a dependability on defense that will prove essential if this core hopes to coexist.
Hachimura is a respectable defender in his own right, but Finney-Smith is a step ahead. That's already evident in the Lakers' quality of play in 2024-25, as they're allowing just 105.7 points per 100 possessions with Finney-Smith on the court and 113.8 when he isn't—a colossal difference of 8.1.
If the Lakers' most recent trades prove anything, it's that Finney-Smith is the perfect fit and the biggest winner of the Lakers' new identity.