PORTLAND — Jordan Clarkson twirled his wispy beard into little points as he reflected on the trade that rebooted a rebuild and sent D’Angelo Russell to Brooklyn.

Why did things go so wrong between the Lakers and their former No. 2 overall pick?

“I really don’t know,” Clarkson said. “I feel like it just wasn’t the right fit for him, to be honest with you.”

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Lonzo Ball helping key Lakers’ surprising defensive resurgence Russell will return to Staples Center on Friday when the Lakers host the Nets (3-5). Through seven games, he is averaging a career-high 21.7 points per game and looking every bit the player the Lakers hoped he would become.

“You see him right now in Brooklyn, he’s cooking,” Clarkson said. “He’s balling. … He’s got a new home, feel like it’s the right fit for him. He’s able to create, score, have the ball in his hands a lot, play the style of play that he wants to.”

The Lakers gave up on him after just 143 games, shipping him along with Timofey Mozgov to Brooklyn for Brook Lopez and the draft pick that became Kyle Kuzma. It was a decisive end to a turbulent tenure, one that hit its low point in March 2016 when a video recorded by Russell showed teammate Nick Young discussing relationships with women other than his fiancée became public.

Forward Julius Randle said he assumed the Lakers would move forward with Russell and Lonzo Ball sharing the backcourt. However, many within the Lakers organization had soured on Russell due to his attitude and work ethic, making it easier to include him in a deal to shed Mozgov’s contract.

“It kind of caught me off guard,” Larry Nance Jr. said, “but at the same time it seems to be beneficial both ways.”

Clarkson, who said Russell lived “damn near next door to me,” was probably closer to the point guard than any other member of the Lakers locker room. He wasn’t as surprised by the trade as his teammates.

“There was just a weird vibe that I started feeling, so I knew something was going to happen,” Clarkson said.

The Lakers are fully invested in building around Ball, Brandon Ingram and Kyle Kuzma. Regardless of whether Russell ever blossoms into an All-Star, his former teammates fully expect him to play like one on Friday. Randle expects Russell will be “extremely fired up” to face his former team.

“Who wouldn’t be?” Randle asked.

“He’ll try to go for, 30 (points)? Forty?” Clarkson said. “I don’t know how many shots he’s going to put up. He’s going to come in here, he’s going to try to get a win for sure. He’s definitely going to put them up. He’s going to try to win the game.”

While the Lakers moved on from Project Russell in May, his former teammates and coach have kept an eye on what he has done with the Nets.

“Being one of our own guys,” Coach Luke Walton said, “I tune in and check him out. He’s been playing great. I’m happy for him. He’s shooting the ball well. Putting up big numbers. And they’re having some success right now.”

Russell’s numbers should not be altogether surprising. He proved to be a dynamic scorer with the Lakers despite an inconsistent role, first under Byron Scott – who stripped Russell of a starting job two months into his rookie season –and then Walton, who made him a reserve for two games near the end of last season.

Things were never worse for Russell than after the incident with Young, which tarnished his image throughout the league.

“I don’t think it played a role in the trade,” Clarkson said, “but in terms of attention … I feel like he got a lot of wrong attention for that.”

By the time the Lakers were ready to move on, Russell might have been, too.

“He was excited, honestly,” said Randle, who is represented by the same agent as Russell. “He kind of got a fresh start. He still was in a major city in Brooklyn. New York. He’s obviously doing very well.”

DODGER BLUES

Luke Walton watched along with much of Los Angeles as the Dodgers’ World Series dreams died on Monday in a 5-1 Game 7 loss to the Houston Astros. The former Lakers forward had a unique perspective on what the night was like for Magic Johnson’s baseball team, having played in the same situation – Game 7 of the 2009 NBA Finals.

“There’s pressure that you get used to as an athlete,” Walton said. “And then there’s Game 7 of the world championship of whatever sport. You can’t prepare your mind for that.”

The Lakers beat the Celtics to secure their 15th championship that night at Staples Center. Walton remembers it vividly.

“There is so much nervous energy and excitement in everything else that comes along with sports that it really is a test of how mentally strong you can be,” he said. “So I am watching it and rooting for the Dodgers and at the same time, I am feeling for some of them because I have been there.”