Lakers’ $51M Ace Up Their Sleeve Unleashes Trade Storm!”
As the NBA trade deadline draws closer, the Los Angeles Lakers’ plans are becoming clearer.
Guards D’Angelo Russell and Austin Reaves have been staples in trade rumors, with the Lakers not entertaining moving the latter to this point. Behind them has been Rui Hachimura, whom the Lakers picked up ahead of the trade deadline last season.
“The Lakers want to keep Reaves and Hachimura,” Bleacher Report’s Eric Pincus wrote on January 16.
Pincus’ intel comes amid the Lakers’ trade interest in Atlanta Hawks star Dejounte Murray.
Hachimura, 25, is averaging 11.8 points, 3.6 rebounds, and 1.0 assists, shooting 49% from the floor and 37% from beyond the arc this season. He re-signed with the Lakers on a three-year, $51 million contract this past offseason.
The No. 9 overall pick of the draft in 2019, Hachimura spent his first four NBA seasons with the Washington Wizards.
The Lakers acquired him in January 2022 for a package of draft picks and Kendrick Nunn.
Hachimura helped spark their Western Conference Finals and developed a strong bond with Lakers star LeBron James this past offseason, with the 21st-year star referring to his young teammate as his “understudy”.