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With the NBA trade deadline on February 9th fast approaching, the Los Angeles Lakers decided to make a move. On Monday, the Lakers dealt guard Kendrick Nunn and three second-round picks — in 2023, 2028, and 2029, respectively — to the Washington Wizards in exchange for forward Rui Hachimura, per a tweet from ESPN's Adrian Wojnarowski.
It didn't take long after news of this deal surfaced for Lakers fans to flock to Twitter to assess the Hachimura acquisition. And, unsurprisingly — seeing as Los Angeles gave up little for the Japanese native — the majority of them seem to be thrilled with the move:
https://twitter.com/BallTalkSportss/status/1617582093500035073
Rui Hachimura shot 44% from 3 in 42 games last season. Since returning from injury in December, he's averaged 14.6 points per game on 49% shooting from the field and 34% from deep.
The #Lakers finally got what they desperately needed — a 6-foot-8 wing who can shoot and defend.
— Anthony Gharib (@GharibSports) January 23, 2023
Hachimura, 24, is in his fourth year in the NBA since the Wizards selected him with the ninth overall pick in the 2019 draft. He has yet to live up to the hype that comes with being a top-ten pick in the NBA, and the biggest reason for this is poor injury luck. Hachimura has yet to play 60-plus games in a single season thanks to the injury bug.
But with all that said, Hachimura has had flashes of brilliance throughout his career when healthy, most recently in his performance against the Magic Saturday. In 30 minutes of play, Hachimura scored 30 points on 13-for-22 shooting from the field and 3-for-5 from deep.
The acquisition of Hachimura is a great low-risk, high-reward gamble by the Lakers. With his lengthy injury history, there's no guarantee that the Hachimura move will pay off. However, on paper, he makes a lot of sense for the Lakers as a talented three-point shooter and defender.
