The Washington Wizards officially introduced their No. 9 draft pick, Rui Hachimura, with a press conference on Friday which provided a memorable moment.
Apparently, the Wizards never had a meeting or even a workout session with the Japanese-born forward prior to the draft. It showed during the presser, with Wizards vice president Tommy Sheppard hilariously asking Hachimura if he can shoot threes.
Yesterday the Wizards drafted Rui Hachimura 9th overall without actually meeting him before.
Today their VP of Basketball Operations had to seriously ask Rui: "You can shoot the three, right?" 🤣 pic.twitter.com/n9RisQiH2H
— Chris Montano (@gswchris) June 22, 2019
As funny as this sounds, this could be another sign of bad management on the part of Washington. The Wizards, however, claim that they followed Rui Hachimura and watched him closely in his three years in Gonzaga.
Rui Hachimura rarely shot threes in college. Though he shot the three at a decent 42 percent clip, he did not shoot it enough, averaging just one attempt in his junior year with the Bulldogs. Nevertheless, the 21-year old still has plenty of time to develop his shot, should it not emerge immediately in his rookie season.
Obviously, 3-point shooting is one of the most important aspects of today's game. A working 3-pointer to go along with his impressive athleticism could potentially make the 6-foot-9, 230-pound Hachimura a force to be reckoned with in the NBA.
Former NBA champion Chauncey Billups compared Hachimura's game to a young Kawhi Leonard. Much like Hachimura, Leonard had a suspect jumper heading into the NBA.
With a ton of work in the gym, Kawhi eventually developed his jump shot and has become a deadly shooter from downtown. Hachimura's work ethic – which many people have raved about – can potentially help him get near the newly-crowned NBA champion in Toronto.
Wizards fans certainly hope so.
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