The Washington Wizards received good news on Monday, as young forward Rui Hachimura has returned to Washington just over a week ahead of the NBA regular season. Hachimura had previous been away from the team due to personal reasons.

Reports were that Rui Hachimura had been away from the team in an effort to focus on his mental health.

The Wizards announced that Hachimura would miss the start of training camp on Sept. 25, just a few days before media day and training camp were set to officially launch.

The Wizards selected Hachimura with the No. 9 overall pick in the 2019 NBA Draft, and he has been a starter every step of the way. As a rookie in 2019-20, Hachimura started and played in 48 games for the Wizards, averaging over 30 minutes per game. In his second season, Hachimura started and played in 57 of a possible 72 games. For his career, Hachimura averages 13.7 points and 5.8 rebounds per game, and shoots .473/.313/.510 (FG%/3PT%/2PT%). The Wizards will be counting on Hachimura to be a big part of their team this year, as he enters year three of his rookie contract.

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Though Hachimura has returned to Washington, he will still have pass COVID protocols/testing prior to being cleared to rejoin the team. Hachimura is likely to be cleared prior to the Wizards first game of the 2021-22 NBA season, which will take place Oct. 20 vs. the Toronto Raptors. The Wizards added Wes Unseld Jr. as head coach and Spencer Dinwiddie at point guard this offseason, so Hachimura will have people to meet and new things to learn upon arriving to camp with Washington.