Second year Washington Wizards player Rui Hachimura welcomed back Kevin Durant back to the NBA with a ferocious slam on Sunday night as the Brooklyn Nets hosted the Wizards in their first pre-season game. On his first professional basketball game in one and a half years, Durant saw himself on the wrong side of a poster after he was out-muscled by the 22 year old en route to a statement slam.

Watch Hachimura catch a body here via the Washington Wizards on Twitter:

It was early in the game and Durant was still getting a feel of his legs which Hachimura took full advantage of. Both Durant and Hachimura were fighting for the board from a Thomas Bryant miss but the 6’8″ Wizards standout outreached the two-time Finals MVP and tapped the ball to board before finally getting the offensive rebound. Once Hachimura got his balance, he soared and met Durant at the rim before flushing the ball down.

Live and breathe the NBA?

🚨 Get viral NBA graphics, memes, rumors and trending news delivered right to your inbox with the Clutch Newsletter.

This was the first time Durant actually played against Hachimura since he was out the entire 2019-2020 season, Hachimura’s rookie year with the Wizards.

After this play, it’s safe to assume that Hachimura definitely made an impression on the former MVP. Though Durant and the Nets came out with the 119-114 W over the Wizards, plays like this will surely give the young Japanese some much-needed confidence as he heads into his second year in the league.

Hachimura had a promising debut last season for the Wizards. He averaged 13.5 points per game and 6.1 rebounds in 30.1 minutes of play per contest. This season, look for the Toyama native to build on his numbers as he’s set to again be a shoe-in for Scott Brooks’ starting unit.

Don’t sleep on Rui with the Wizards.