Los Angeles Lakers superstar LeBron James revealed that forward Rui Hachimura was the only teammate that tagged along with him this summer.
James shared that Hachimura made “a few trips” with him on the road in the offseason.
LeBron revealed that Rui Hachimura is the only teammate who tagged along with him this summer and that Hachimura "made a few trips" to travel with James on the road this offseason.
— Jovan Buha (@jovanbuha) October 5, 2023
It’s great to see that Hachimura and James spent some time together in the offseason, and hopefully the two have grown closer as teammates and friends because of it.
Hachimura came to the Lakers in a trade with the Washington Wizards last season before the trade deadline.
The former No. 9 overall pick appeared in 33 games with the Lakers in the regular season and made nine starts. For the entire 2022-23 season, Hachimura averaged 11.2 points, 4.5 rebounds and 0.9 assists per game while shooting 48.6 percent from the field and 31.9 percent from beyond the arc.
The Lakers liked what they saw from Hachimura, as they decided to bring him back this offseason. Hachimura was a restricted free agent, but he ended up signing a three-year, $51 million deal with the Lakers.
That was one of the many moves that Los Angeles made to keep the core intact from last season’s team that made the Western Conference Finals. The team also brought back guards Austin Reaves and D’Angelo Russell in free agency.
During last season’s playoff run, Hachimura had four games with 20 or more points for the Lakers. His biggest performance came in Game 1 of the first round against the Memphis Grizzlies.
In that game, Hachimura was lights out from beyond the arc, hitting 5-of-6 attempts from 3, on his way to a 29-point game.
While he may not have those types of games on a nightly basis, it’s certainly huge for the Lakers that he can give them a scoring boost from time to time.
It’s possible that James and Hachimura have an increased chemistry on the floor in the 2023-24 season after spending time together this summer.
James is hoping to lead the Lakers back to the NBA Finals, as he’s already won one title with the franchise.
Los Angeles should have a good chance to do that this season, as the team added players like Christian Wood, Gabe Vincent and Taurean Prince to an already impressive roster.
It will be interesting to see how Hachimura performs in the 2023-24 season after spending time in the offseason with one of the NBA’s greatest players of all time.
