Dorian Finney-Smith’s summer began earlier than anticipated with the Lakers getting eliminated by the Wolves in the opening round of the NBA playoffs.
He has wasted no time getting his body right, as Dave McMenamin of ESPN reports that the Lakers wing has undergone surgery on his left ankle.
Los Angeles Lakers forward Dorian Finney-Smith underwent surgery on his left ankle and is expected to be able to participate in training camp ahead of the 2025-26 NBA season, sources told ESPN.
The procedure will allow the 31-year-old Finney-Smith to play pain free after cleaning up a lingering ankle injury that he fought to play through the last several seasons.
DFS was a key player for the Lakers this season, appearing in 43 games with the purple and gold after being traded to Los Angeles mid-year.
While he was dependable and regularly available, Finney-Smith did miss games for the Lakers due to left ankle soreness.
Hopefully, getting this surgery will eliminate the left ankle issue and have him ready to play as much as possible during his first full season with the Lakers.
He averaged 7.9 points and shot 39% from 3-point range with the Lakers, quickly becoming one of the main members of the rotation.
This is a big summer for Finney-Smith as he has a player option on the table and could either opt in and earn $15.8 million next season or test free agency.
Eric Pincus of Bleacher Report seems to think he will return to the Lakers, but that’s a decision DFS will have to make later this summer.
During his exit interview, Finney-Smith stated that he had not considered his player option during the season, so we won’t know which way he’s leaning until he makes a decision.
Given how well DFS played for the Lakers this season, their trust in him during the playoffs and his camaraderie with their superstar Luka Dončić, it’s likely they’d love to have him back next year.
Perhaps the blessing in disguise for the Lakers is that getting bounced so early allows DFS to undergo this surgery, recover and still be ready for training camp, if he does, in fact, return to Los Angeles.
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