Los Angeles Lakers forward Rui Hachimura Isaiah J. Downing-USA TODAY Sports

Lakers retain forward on three-year deal

Originally posted on Hoops Rumors | By Rory Maher | Last updated 6/30/23

The Lakers have reached an agreement with Rui Hachimura, according to Shams Charania of The Athletic (Twitter link). Sources tell Charania that the restricted free-agent forward will sign a three-year, $51M contract to remain in Los Angeles.

According to Brad Turner of The Los Angeles Times (Twitter link), Hachimura’s deal will be fully guaranteed.

The ninth pick of the 2019 draft, Hachimura spent his first three-plus NBA seasons with the Wizards, averaging 13.0 PPG and 5.1 RPG on .479/.356/.776 shooting in 177 games over that span (118 starts, 27.8 MPG). In 30 games with the Wizards in 2022/23, he averaged 13.0 PPG and 4.3 RPG on .488/.337/.759 shooting in 24.3 MPG off the bench.

Hachimura was traded to the Lakers in January in exchange for Kendrick Nunn and three second-round picks. His regular-season numbers actually declined with L.A., with the Japanese forward posting 9.6 PPG and 4.7 RPG on .485/.296/.721 shooting in 33 games (nine starts, 22.4 MPG).

However, he had a scorching hot playoff run, posting a .557/.487/.882 shooting line across 16 postseason appearances. He also chipped in 12.2 PPG and 3.6 in 24.3 MPG during the Lakers’ journey to the Western Conference Finals.

Hachimura was eligible for a rookie scale extension before last season started and reportedly received an offer in the range of $12-14M per year, but passed on that opportunity in search of a bigger deal in free agency. It turned out to be a wise financial decision, as he’ll be making $17M annually on his new contract.

In case you missed it, the Lakers have also reached free-agent agreements with guard Gabe Vincent and forward Taurean Prince.

This article first appeared on Hoops Rumors and was syndicated with permission.

More must-reads: