According to ESPN, the Los Angeles Lakers have just pulled off a three-team trade with the New Jersey Nets and the Houston Rockets, whereby the Lakers would acquire veteran forward Joe Smith from the Nets in exchange for Sasha Vujacic.
New Jersey will also send forward Terrence Williams to the Rockets and will receive the LA's 2011 first round pick and Houston's lottery protected first round choice in 2012.
The deal cannot be officially authorized until December 15th per NBA rules restricting the trading of off-season acquisitions, of which Joe Smith was one for New Jersey.
Smith comes to Los Angeles with career averages of 11.0 points and 6.4 rebounds per game in 16 seasons since being selected out of Maryland with the first overall pick by the Golden State Warriors in the 1995 NBA Draft.
The deal provides Kobe Bryant and the Lakers with some added front court depth amidst injuries to veteran center Theo Ratliff and young starting center Andrew Bynum. Phil Jackson's squad has struggled in recent weeks to overcome this lack of depth, though the return of Bynum against the Washington Wizards should provide some relief.
It also r ...
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Article written by Josh Martin
Los Angeles Lakers Trade Sasha Vujacic To New Jersey Nets
December 14th, 2010 by Josh Martin Leave a reply »
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