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New Lakers Star Pushes Limits With Unconventional Training

Originally posted on Last Word On Sports
By Aleksandar Mishkov | Last updated Aug 11, 2025 1:00 PM ET

The Los Angeles Lakers should be happy seeing their players prepare for the upcoming season. Due to the regular season schedule, there is not much time for players to get in shape and work on their bodies. Looking at the latest viral videos, Rui Hachimura is the latest Lakers player to try an unconventional workout.

New Lakers Star Pushes Limits With Unconventional Training

Luka Doncic started the trend this summer with his cover story for Men’s Health. In that story, we saw Luka in maybe the best shape of his life. Even before that feature, there were reports that Luka was pushing his teammates to train harder this summer. Being healthy and fit can make a ton of difference for the Lakers. They have several aging stars on their roster, so they need to preserve energy and make it to the playoffs. Recently, we also saw LeBron James trying the trendy Pilates reformer workout.

Now, it is Hachimura’s turn. Rui is from Japan, where sumo fighters are celebrated. In a new video surfacing online, we see Hachimura training with sumo wrestlers as a way to prepare for the upcoming season. The video shows Rui trying traditional sumo exercises, which help improve mobility, stability, and core strength.

It seems like the Lakers are all highly motivated to show they can still compete. With Luka in shape and possibly playing at an MVP-level, LA can be a scary team. The additions they made this summer will help improve their defense. And when you have Luka and LeBron, offense shouldn’t be an issue.

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Can Sumo Workout Help Rui Hachimura?

As a native of Japan, Rui is quite familiar with the tradition of Sumo wrestling. There are plenty of benefits of Sumo that should help Rui have a great season, and the Lakers can benefit from that. Here are some specific benefits of sumo training.

Increased leg strength, as sumo works out the quads, hamstrings, glutes, and the abductors.
Improved mobility, the wide stance helps with hip and ankle mobility.
Enhanced athletic performance, by strengthening key muscle groups, sumo training can result in better performance in different sports.
Reduced risk of lower back injury, resulting in fewer missed games.
Improved core stability thanks to maintaining balance during sumo squats and deadlifts.

Rui Might Have a New Role with the Lakers

In the last two seasons, Hachimura has become a valuable rotation player for the Lakers. Last season, he started 57 of the 59 games he played. The trend started in the 2024 playoffs, when the lineups with Rui showed great potential.

However, the Lakers are undersized when they have Rui at center. This season, he might have to adjust to coming off the bench. The Lakers signed Deandre Ayton in the offseason, who is projected to be their starting center. There still might be potential for some starting lineups with Hachimura, but that is up to head coach JJ Reddick to decide. Rui might battle with another newcomer, Jake LaRavia, for the starting forward spot.

This article first appeared on Last Word On Sports and was syndicated with permission.

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