Rui Hachimura Reveals Lakers' Biggest Priority This Offseason

The Los Angeles Lakers exposed a few glaring holes in their first-round playoff exit to the Minnesota Timberwolves, but forward Rui Hachimura may have narrowed down what his team needs to do the most this offseason.

After clinching the No. 3 seed in the Western Conference, the Lakers put their 50-32 record to the test against the No. 6 seed Timberwolves but could only muster one win in the series that ended in five games.

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A major reason for the early exit was the rebounding discrepancies between the two teams.

The eventual series-clinching Game 5 was dominated on the glass by Minnesota, who outrebounded the Lakers 54-37. This included 18 offensive rebounds to L.A.'s eight.

"We couldn't get rebounds," Hachimura said. "We need someone to get rebounds."

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Part of this reason, as noted by Timberwolves' forward Jaden McDaniels, was that Jaxson Hayes only played 30 total minutes through four total games in the series. The lack of Hayes — the only seven-footer on the team who got more than three minutes of playoff action — was greatly felt by McDaniels as he spoke on the absence after the series.

"I just noticed at certain times when they had no rim protector in the game, when Jaxson Hayes wasn't on the court," McDaniels said. "If he's not on the court, I'm basically the tallest person out there. So I don't think no one could rim protect me."

At six-foot-nine, it certainly felt that way at times for the young forward, especially in a decisive Game 4, grabbing 11 rebounds to go with his 16 points.

Whether it is by trade, free agency, or an exciting mix of both, the Lakers will be expected to address the issue around the rim and look to bring in a major glass cleaner as they will anxiously wait at another crack at the playoffs.

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