During a media session on Friday, guard Dion Waiters was asked how he felt about being reunited with newcomer J.R. Smith on the Los Angeles Lakers after they were involved in a major trade in 2015.
Smith butted in, and had a pointed message for The Athletic’s Joe Vardon, who asked the question.
Dion Waiters tells a reporter to stop starting s**t 😂 pic.twitter.com/XSvdTRcRA2
— Ahn Fire Digital (@AhnFireDigital) July 17, 2020
“Stop trying to start s— Joe,” Smith said.
The Lakers are heading into the resumption of the 2019-20 season in unity.
Waiters, 28, was drafted by the Cleveland Cavaliers with the No. 4 pick in the 2012 NBA Draft.
However, the Cavaliers shipped him in a three-team trade in 2015 to bolster the franchise’s chances of winning a championship with superstar LeBron James back in the mix.
The three primary players involved were Waiters, Smith and Iman Shumpert. The Cavs dealt Waiters to the Oklahoma City Thunder, while the Cavs received Smith and Shumpert from the New York Knicks.
Smith, 34, played for the Cavs from 2015 to 2018. During that span, he went to four NBA Finals and won one title in 2016.
Meanwhile, Waiters has bounced around the league. He excelled with the Miami Heat during the 2016-17 season, when he put up 15.8 points, 4.3 assists and 3.3 rebounds per game.
Now, Smith and Waiters are reunited with James in Los Angeles. The trio is set on winning the 2020 championship in Orlando, Fla.
